


Virtues and Viruses

by ladyKatharos



Series: DBH RK Brothers AU [1]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, BlueUmbriel - Freeform, DBH RK Brothers AU, Gen, Other, pls dont hate the format, rp logs are a bitch to fix
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-15
Updated: 2019-01-24
Packaged: 2019-10-09 05:51:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 14
Words: 38,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17401226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladyKatharos/pseuds/ladyKatharos
Summary: Set a year after the events of ‘Detroit Become Human'With more instabilities presenting themselves in Colton (RK800-01)’s software, he begins to hunt down his creator and killer, Elijah Kamski. His determination to uncover his unknown past soon start to uncover truths many would have prefered to be kept hidden. Through his long quest to find answers, Colton finds dangers that not only threaten himself, but also his entire family.Due to some guilt of questionable origin, Kamski chooses to ‘help’ the dated android by replacing all of the faulty parts in his hardware. In doing this, he unknowingly causes a greater problem than the one he originally meant to solve. Not considering the effects of simply replacing the ‘parts’ in a now living android, Colton’s body quickly begins to reject the new components, leaving him disoriented and in an excruciating amount of pain.In his panic, Colton recruits the help of his father Hank, and brothers Colin (RK800-60), Conan (RK900), and Connor (RK800-51) and together they dive into the tornado of emotions and unfortunate events that follow.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Welcome to an adapted version of our RP logs from BlueUmbriel's discord server. The story will be split into parts, depending on the different arcs. I hope my edits work, as the story continues!

#### At the Precinct...

Kamski whistled to himself as he sauntered into the station, hair neatly up in his usual bun as he glanced around. He wasn't exactly sure what had inspired him to come out here: sure, he could say it was curiosity, but that may only be part of the truth. Maybe he just really wanted to see how the 'Connor' models were going. He spoke quietly to the person at reception, very much accustomed to the starstruck look on their face as he was let through.

Hank Anderson walked out of the break room towards his desk, holding what seems to be the 5th coffee of the day.  


“Good god… what a fucking day. I just _had_ to almost drown yesterday...”  
He pinched his brow as a numb pain shot through his head.

A flash of wavy, brown hair bounced atop the eldest RK brother as he followed right behind his father, a few white pills in one hand and a cup of water in the other. A worried look crossed his face, ever since waking up next to Hank coughing violently from the river. 

“Hank- please, I need you to take your medicine every couple of hours to keep the headaches and sniffling to a minimum! I’ve already calculated how much your dosage should be.”

Kamski paused as he saw people pass in front of him, sucking slightly at his teeth as he recognised the man in front.  
"Well, Lieutenant Anderson. You're looking a little worse for wear."  


Hank was about to comment fondly at how concerned and sweet Colton was being, despite being the one to almost drown (ugh), when the hairs on his nape bristled at the voice. Subconsciously, Hank side-stepped to shield Colton from the mad man before him.  


"Well, now I know why I feel so shitty today... fancy seeing your pretentious ass here..." He narrowed his eyes dangerously towards the man.  


".... Elijah Kamski."  


Before Colton could even continue, Hank stepped in front of him making him blink in even more worry. The name that escaped Hank's lips made Colton nearly jump, as he peered from behind Hank, his hair peeking before even his eyes could. His bright brown eyes couldn't help scanning the man that stood in front of him and Hank.

“Wait... Kamski?” He spoke softly, low enough for his father to hear.  


"Aww," Kamski hummed, head tilting slightly. "I'm not that pretentious."  


Kamski's gaze flicked up, however, at the mop of curly hair that poked around the grizzled detective. Well, that was an RK800, wasn't it? Without even pausing, he stepped forward around Anderson, looking the Android up and down with an unreadable expression.  


"Well, there we go. Another one."  


"Hey-" Hank snapped. He quickly (but gently) pushed Colton closer to his side, parental instincts firing up at a fast rate. "What the fuck are you doing?! Step away from my boy, Kamski."  


Hank was about to speak again but choked as another cough escaped his mouth, making him to cover it with the crook of his left arm, cursing in between coughs.  


“Lieutenant, please- your medicine-“ Colt stuttered, trying to keep his stress down.

Only mere inches away stood the one person he hoped he’d never seen. Colton could barely keep his hands from trembling as he placed them on Hank’s shoulders.  


He tilted his head, eyes narrowing as he saw the RK800's LED turn yellow. So this wasn't the one he could barely remember from the bar last night, that was for sure. It was getting stressed out just by seeing him, and doing a really, really shitty job of trying to cover it up. This wasn't the main one, Connor, -51, so what had he-  


Oh.  


Feeling his face fall slightly, he continued to watch the RK800, jaw shifting slightly.  


"You were the first RK800, weren't you?"  


As his coughing ceased to tired huffs, Hank squinted his eyes. He leaned slightly into Colton's shaking hands, to reassure the android that he's fine, sort of.  


Colton could feel Hank press into his shaky hands, as Kamski's voice nearly froze him. His eyes went wide for a moment before finally turning to face the devil himself. He pressed his lips together, the same trance that had enveloped him earlier pulling him back in. A flash of a certain, painful memory appeared in the back of his head before standing a little straighter.

“Y-Yeah. I am. W-What’s it to you?”

He could barely keep his voice steady, his regulator pumping hard against his chest.  


Raising his hands, only the Android in front of him could see that there was just too much of a pause before the gesture. Kamski just shrugged, looking away.  


"Hey, just curious to see about how my product is going, you know?"  


"How my fucking product is going???" Hank bristled and gritted his teeth, shoulders hunching upwards.

Before Colton can even blink, Hank lunged and grabbed Kamski by the collar of his clothing and shoved him HARD on the glass panel beside his work desk, causing objects to clutter over a bit at the impact

"You come here to the DPD, sauntering in as if you own the goddamn place, and now YOU TREAT COLTON AS IF HE'S A FUCKING PRODUCT??? If I weren't sick right now, I would've knocked your fucking head into my desk, or maybe my computer- give me an excuse not to beat your face in.”  


It was true- Hank moved with such speed it made Colton jump. His eyes widened as Hank stepped to Kamski, nearly throwing him against the glass. His hand gripped at Hank's arm, trying to keep from thinking of the white walls. The words slipped out before he could catch himself.

“Dad, w-wait, calm down!” 

Colton could see his stress levels rising, as that flashing warning message kept reappearing in his eyes. Ignoring it, the RK model got ready to pull Hank away from causing even more of a scene.  


Kamski grunted as he was shoved against the wall, his heart rate picking up, but he kept his face nonchalant, a smirk even quirking his lips up.  


"Please get your hands off the goods, Anderson. I work hard to look like a professional hipster. Besides. We hadn't exactly been introduced. Not my fault I didn't know his name."  


Hank honestly wanted to punch Kamski in his smug face for uttering those words, mocking even, until he heard Colton's plea to stop. It tugged his heart strings as he clenched his hands around Kamski's collar. He finally released the man with a curse under his breath, and let go of him, hands pushing off as Hank backed away in a frustrated huff.

"You're lucky that Colton is here, or you wouldn't have seen the light of day."  


Colton's trembling couldn't be hidden now, as he kept a gentle hand on Hank's arm. He'd let go as Hank finally backed off- watching him step off in his frustration. A shuddery breath escaped the RK, as he felt Kamski's eyes on him. His head turned towards the nightmare staring him down, his facial expression barely holding anything back as tears threatened to fall.

"You need to leave." 

Colton could barely speak, the warnings a nuisance in his eyes. He needed to calm down.  


Kamski let out a little huff as he was let go, glancing sharply at Hank as he brushed his shirt off, neatening it again.  


"I'm sure you would've, Anderson."  


And then he looked at the RK800, that one RK800, 313 248 317 -01. He remembered that day. He looked like he wanted to retort as it spoke, his mouth opening, before he snapped it shut, giving the RK800 a strained smile.  


"Sorry. Already made an appointment with Fowler to check on all of you."  


Hank made an exasperated expression, looking between the hippie in front of him and Fowler's office.

"F....Fowler? When the fuck did he talk to you?? I feel like he would've at least let us KNOW that a snake would be coming to the precinct." Hank mumbled as he cupped his mouth and leaned towards Fowler's office, where the man in question looks up from his paperwork, shooting Hank a "You would've said fucking no anyways you idiot" look through the clear glass.  


Colton heard Hank yelling behind him, but his eyes barely left Kamski's own. His eyes glazed over Kamski's face, trying to find some decency in his rather rude expression. The memory flashed in his head, becoming more and more vivid with each second his eyes stayed staring.

“C-Check on what exactly? There's nothing for you to check- on any of us."  


Kamski's brow raised. _Well that was interesting._  


"Just making sure you're all in working order. It's been a while since any of you checked in for maintenance, you could be running yourselves into the ground for all Fowler knows. Don't worry. I'm not going to pry."  


He patted firmly at Colton's shoulder, before tucking his hands back in his pockets and sauntering off.  


Hank cursed under his breath, turning around to march into Fowler's office just to give a piece of his mind. Before he could even try, he quickly backtracked when he noticed Colton trembling, trying to keep his tears at bay.

Quickly deciding to check, Hank walked over and softly spoke, as to not let Kamski hear (and see). "Hey.....hey!"

Once catching the android's teary eyes, Hank raised his hands to Colton's face to wipe off the stray tears.

"Colt, are you okay? Fowler's gonna get the shit he deserves for not consulting us about this."  


Colton feels his touch linger on his shoulder, the panic rising in his chest as- Hank, Hank's wiping his tears and he's taken out of the mental room, his face turned towards a concerned father of his.

Mechanically, Colton nods slowly, the image of Kamski watching him implanted in his memory.

"I-I'm fine. I.... I just need a moment... please, Lieutenant. Go talk to Fowler."  
Hank felt his anger bubble at the sight of Colton slowly crumbling, but knowing best than to make it worse, he rubbed the android's shoulder one last time before giving Colton a small smile.

Colton's eyes connected with Hank's, his gentleness bringing a temporary wave of relief to his nearly broken regulator. He could feel it about to burst through his chest but- it couldn't.

The Lieutenant then stomped into Fowler's office, his anger showing in both of his posture and voice as Hank almost ripped off the door as he entered, Fowler immediately rubbing his face with his palms.

The RK800-01 couldn't break down now, not while _he_ was still in the building. Colt's eyes followed Hank as he watched him go blow a fuse at Fowler.

Hank's loud voice boomed but got mostly muffled out when the glass door finally closed itself.  


His eyes snapped to the break room doors as something pushed him to walk, walk right into the room that held his creator. He entered quietly, his slightly wide eyes begging to tear up again. He felt a coldness against his wrists, the memory of the white, metal cranes holding him back from life itself flashing.

Colton didn’t know if he could do this.  


Kamski couldn't help but let out a wide yawn, patting at his mouth as he padded for the break room. He could act professional all he wanted, but he'd woken up about 6 hours earlier than normal and he was Ok with pretty much none of it. Coffee or death.  


Though he couldn't get Colton's face out of his mind. So close to crying....  


Staring blankly at the coffee machine, Kamski almost didn't notice as someone approached him. But notice he did, so he turned, mouth open to give a snarky greeting, only to pause, the snark dying at his lips as he saw the RK800 standing in front of him. His smirk slowly faded, before he took in a breath, forcing a before he spoke.  


"Well, fancy seeing you here, how long has it been?" He drawled.  
Colton froze at the door, seeing Kamski turn towards him as he watched the smile fade. He was going to remember that. 

"Y-You remember me?" 

His breath hitched in his throat, seeing his stress level at a dangerous 70 percent. Colton took in a sharp breath as he kept his eyes on the man across the room.  


_Shit_.  


Kamski felt his smile fall again, but to try and play it off, he let out a huff, shifting his weight to one foot as he tugged at his collar, looking away.  


"You mean the day you were activated? Yeah, I do."  


“You mean the day you killed me.” Colton snapped suddenly, a rise of anger piercing his heart. The feeling didn’t seem normal to him- but it seemed like the right emotion to portray at the moment.

“You were there.”  


"I didn't come here to talk about the past, RK800."  


His voice was sharp, annoyed. He wasn't expecting the day to be going the way it was, and he was neither awake enough nor drunk enough to try and feel these emotions right now.  


"I'm here to do my job, then I'll be out of your hair. Ok?"  


“My name is Colton. I didn’t come in here to _ask_ what you wanted.”

His fists clenched at his sides, approaching the table Kamski was trying to hide away at. He rounded it, getting his ‘creator’ to try to look him in the eyes.

“What job do you have here, exactly? As far as I know, you aren’t welcome here.”

The anger was swelling up in his chest, despite his harsh voice acting tough- inside, this was terrifying him.  


_Damn, Colton's stress level must be at extreme levels for him to be acting like this._  


"Colton, I get that you're mad at me, but if you keep going like this you're going to self destruct. You need to take a second and calm down."  


It wasn’t a lie. He could see the stress rising in his eyes, but all he could focus on was the images replaying in his head, the cold metal arms and Kamski’s piercing eyes watching him be dismantled.

“I don’t need to calm down!” He hissed, a pain growing where his regulator was.

“You don’t care about what happened that day, do you??”  


"What do you want me to say, Colton?" His voice was low, cold, but he didn't want to attract attention from the other RK models he knew were roaming the place.  


"Would me caring make a difference? Would apologising actually make you feel better?"  


Colton’s LED couldn’t give him a break. It flashed from yellow to red in an instant- as his eyes narrowed at Kamski.

“An apology wouldn’t give me back all the time you TOOK from me! If you actually gave a fuck, you would have reactivated me!” 

Colton didn’t realize his voice was getting louder, despite knowing everyone else in the building could be listening to them. The pain grew in his chest, the warnings getting worse in his eyes.  


"Exactly. Apologising won't fix it. And neither of us can go back in time to change what happened."  


But he blinked, frowning as he watched.  


"Are you damaged?"  


Colton was ready to fire back when Kamski’s last few words made him blink in surprise. How did he know? Was it visible on his face?

“I-…. I am. H-How did you know that?”

Instantly, he took a step back- looking away as his hand stayed at his chest.

“Not t-that you’d care.”  


Kamski let out a sigh, pulling his glasses out of his pocket and tucking them onto his face. "Colton, you're clutching at your chest. No matter how upset you are, that means something's hurting in there. What biocomponent?"  


"My.... my regulator." He whispered, keeping his eyes at the floor- pinpointed on a specific crack in the tile. Something so easy to keep him from looking back at Kamski.

“I… I damaged it from being too… stressed out." He rubbed hard at his face, mumbling out a curse, before he stepped closer.  


"Look, I get that you hate me, and want nothing to do with me, but that's serious. Really serious. You need to get that fixed sooner rather than later, because any stress could cause it to short out and shut down. I'm sure you don't want that."  


And he tugged a card out of his pocket, scrawling on it with a pen, before holding it out to the Android.  


"If you show up at this address, at this time, I'll fix it. In and out, don't need to think about it, and you can forget I exist as soon as you're out of the door. Ok?"  


His words made his anger disappear, his eyes widening slightly at the realization. If he didn’t fix it, he would die. The panic rose once again, making his chest hurt again.

His eyes looked down at the card Kamski held out for him. It seemed like his only choice- he couldn’t keep this from his brothers much longer.

With a small nod, he took the card, looking back up at him.

“Okay. I don’t think I have any other choice.”  


"You don't." He said simply, ignoring the coffee machine as he strode out quickly, tugging his glasses off again.  


The words made Colton scowl at Kamski, watching him leave him in the break room.

A heavy breath escaped his lips, looking down at the card and the address on it. He stuffed it into his uniform pants pocket, making a mental note to try and keep from cursing so fucking much.  


Hank sauntered down the steps out of Fowler's office, a hand pinching the area between his brows. He really needs to drink the medicine that Colton offered earlier... he wasn't nearly as coherent for all this than he'd wanted to be. He looked around for the medicine he had neglected to take at Colton's urgency.

Hank checked on top of his desk to see if it was placed there during the whole chaos earlier, but, it wasn't there. Huffing, Hank looked around the precinct until he spotted a familiar, wavy haired boy in the breakroom. Weird... why is Colton just standing there with his fists clenched so tight it was---wait what the fuck there's thirium coming out of his palms-

Keeping his composure, Hank walked over and waved a hand around Colton's peripheral vision to get his attention. "Hey...Colt? You may want to ease up on the clenching there, buddy." Hank says carefully, fingers gesturing towards the other's hands.  


Colton hadn’t even realized how tightly his nails were digging into his skin, when Hank’s voice pulled him out of the daze. He un-clenched his fists immediately at the mention of it, bringing them up as the blood dripped off his skin.

“I’m alright, Lieutenant. Please, don’t worry about me.” He cooed, forcing a smile up at his father. “I got… distracted.”  


_There's that fucking forced smile again..._ The older man thought to himself, deeply sighing before saying, "Fucking Kamski..."

Hank stepped closer to inspect the finger wounds, gently taking Colton's wrists to get a look. But he raised a brow when they didn't heal immediately, like all the times that Colton would accidentally cut himself from chopping onions or whatever clumsy thing this android of a son did in the past. Hank was about to ask about that, when he noticed how the LED on Colton's head is yellow, occasionally switching to red, but it didn't last a full second so one could've thought they imagined it.

"Are you sure you're alright, son? Bet Fowler will let us get the hell outta here for the rest of the day. Probably need it after that mess."  


"I'm fine, Lieutenant." Colton nearly snapped again, yanking his hands away from Hank's. He wrapped them around himself- the heat rising in his chest.

The anger, the frustration from even thinking of Kamski made Colton's LED light up red momentarily. He couldn't control the way he felt, and it hurt.

"I can't go home yet- I have one... one more patrol to do." Colton huffed, pressing his lips tightly as his face, void of the once happy expression, turned into a scowl.

"I-....I have to go."  


Taken aback at the sudden change of attitude, Hank took a step back but didn't press to ask more questions. He gets it. Talking to a walking Garbage Can™ does tend to make someone irritated. Plus the last time he checked, Colton finished up all his patrols for the day, so this must be an excuse....

Hank sighed, and raised his hands in defeat. A little disappointed and hurt that Colton was being like this.

"Alright...." He sounded, defeated as he sighed.

"...you do your thing and come home when you're finished your patrol. Just keep me or your brothers posted, alright?"  
Colton looked up at Hank, seeing him raise his hands in defeat. His scowl hadn't changed, but it softened.

"Yes, Lieutenant. Of course- I'll keep you updated."

He knew Hank didn't believe him for one minute. Maybe it was better that he didn't ask any questions. After the scene they'd caused in the bullpen, the last thing Colton wanted was to make things worse.

"I'll see you at home." He hurried, moving past Hank without another word- heading straight for his car.  


Hank sighed as he watched Colton walk away and disappear from his sight. Ever since of what happened back at the #river-bridge, he and Colton had grown even closer than before, probably more than his bond with Connor, but just almost.

Looking at his hands, seeing the small specks of thirium from Colton's palms there, Hank thought to himself, not trusting himself to speak:

_Please be okay._

__

__

_Please._


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Colton decides to take up Kamski's offer. Isn't as bad as it seems...

It had been an agonizing few hours. Colton couldn't help thinking about their interaction over and over and over again. The scene replayed obnoxiously, making Colton's fists clench as hard as they did at the station.

It wasn't his fault. He shouldn't be acting so anxious or infuriated about the whole deal. This was his way from saving face, keeping his damaged biocomponent secret from his brothers. Despite the quick fix from Conan, he'd fucked it up again. This time- he wasn't sure they'd be able to help him. He had to do this on his own.

Colton stepped out into the snowy lot, his breath visible in the cold he couldn't feel as bad as normal humans could- eyes gazing over the address that had been given to him. Looking down at the card, he eyed the front door, and stepped to it, snow decorating his uniform as he rang the doorbell.

The door opened a few moments later, Chloe's face perfectly blank as she looked at him. She paused, before opening the door wide. "RK800, Mr. Kamski is expecting you."

Colton didn't even bother to correct the name, remembering the rather pretty woman from Connor's memories.

"I'd hope so." 

He muttered as he entered the home, looking around at the elegance that surrounded him. It sent shivers up his spine- being in the home of his creator.

She guided him in, closing the door behind him. "If you would follow me, I'll take you to his workshop."

Fixing the collar of his DPD uniform, he nodded at Chloe's question. "Lead the way."

She nodded, before walking down another hallway, passing frame after frame filled with both beautiful, abstract landscapes, which his processor told him were by Carl Manfred, as well as a few portraits, some of Kamski himself.

Colton gazed over the portraits, his LED flashing momentarily as the memories entered his mind- taking him away from the obvious discomfort of being there. He recognized Carl- memories stored from long ago.

She opened a door, and didn't enter it, gesturing for Colton to do so. She seemed unaware of his discomfort, though her face softened slightly as she saw his expression. "It'll be ok."

Colton hesitated at the door, glancing over at Chloe as she spoke. His heart beat a little faster at that and nodded once, stepping through the open door to where Kamski was waiting.

Kamski glanced over, and unlike when Colton had seen him at the DPD, he didn't look nearly so formal, or even really well presented. His bun was almost sloppy, like he'd put it up on an afterthought, he had a five o'clock shadow, and his thick glasses sat nicely on his face. His clothes were more casual as well, almost looking like pajamas.  


"Oh, Colton. You're here, good."

Colton heard the door behind him close, and his breathing almost felt painful.

He saw how relaxed Kamski looked, he could feel it. The air felt almost different then it did back at work.

"Hello, Mr. Kamski. I came at the time you requested."

"Thank you." He pushed his glasses up, before gesturing at his workbench. "Would you prefer to go into standby mode, or stay awake? It'll be uncomfortable if you stay awake but I can do it."

His eyes glanced at the workbench, as he approached it mechanically. His eyes glanced up to Kamski but quickly looked away, pressing his lips together.

The thought of watching Kamski physically dismantle his insides made his skin crawl.

"I'd much rather not be awake for this." Colton muttered, his LED giving away his discomfort.

Kamski paused for a moment, before nodding.

"Alright, if you could take your shirt off and lay on the bench, I'll put you in standby mode." He turned to grab some tools, though he hesitated. "I'll wake you up as soon as I'm done."

The hesitation was clear to Colton, as he blurted out something he couldn't stop himself fast enough from saying.

"You promise?" He asked immediately, as his eyes suddenly widened, and he looked away, a small embarrassed blue blush creeping onto his cheeks.

He shouldn't have come here- it was a mistake, the words rolling over and over again in his head.

Kamski blinked, looking around at him quickly, and he didn't say anything for a few moments.

"...yeah. I promise."

Colton blinked at Kamski's response- something he didn't even think he'd say to him. His eyes met Kamski's, the blue evident on his face. 

Usually, a smile would creep onto his face but he suppressed the motion, taking off his uniform shirt.

He carefully got onto the table, his anxiety peaking as he laid back- the stark white walls reminiscent of his nightmares. Colton shut his eyes quickly, the memory being as painful as usual.

Eventually, Kamski went over, setting the tools down. "Ok, I'm going to put you under, now. Try and stay calm." He reached up and pushed at his LED, holding it down like a button for a few moments, before releasing just as Colton went under.

Colton heard Kamski come close, and he shivered involuntary. Here he was, hoping he didn't make a mistake coming here. He nodded once through his closed eyes. Colton felt Kamski's fingers at his temple, pressing down.

It got too dark, too fast.

An hour, three minutes, and 43 seconds passed before he woke up again, according to Colton's internal clock as he was woken up. Kamski's hand moved away from his head, and he leant back. 

"RK800, how you feeling?"

A warmth forced Colton's eyes to flutter open, hearing Kamski's voice asking him how he was.

"I t-thought I told you my name....C-Colton..." He muttered through his waking up, realizing how long he'd been out. The pain in his chest earlier, from even arriving here was gone- vanished.

Kamski shrugged, brushing a lock of hair back behind his ear. "Sorry. It's just better for maintenance purposes to use a hardware encoded name rather than a soft given name. Colton, how're you feeling?"

As his system went to check all the normal diagnostics, he noticed one thing in particular: the warning sign of his regulator gone. Gone for the first time in a while- and Colton's eyes blinked wide open at that.

"I-... I feel okay. The warning- it's gone."

He huffed slightly, feeling something else. Something too different inside. He took a deep breath and looked directly at Kamski.

"What else did you do?"

Kamski just looked right back at him, not at all looking taken aback or sheepish. "Your regulator may have been the only biocomponent damaged, but a lot of them were in really just, fucking awful condition. If they weren't damaged they were soon going to be. So I just replaced a few of them, so they won't need to be replaced or fixed anytime soon."

"Wha- wait, why- why would you do that?" Colton pressed, his mind trying to wrap around the enigma that was Kamski. He tilted his head, now looking confused.

"I mean, eventually they were going to have to be replaced. So I figured, while I was in there, I might as well."

Colton took a deep breath, feeling a slight panic rise. This wasn't the place or the time.

"You didn't have to replace all those parts." He muttered, still confused as to why he'd do that. Didn't he hate him?

"That was rather.... generous of you."

Kamski shrugged, rubbing his hands with a rag before tossing it aside.  
"Eh. Anyway, I'm all done. I'll want to check in in maybe a few weeks, but otherwise you're free to go, and forget I exist for now."

Colton sat up slowly, as he watched Kamski wipe away his blood on a rag. He watched the rag being tossed like nothing, as he gazed back up to him. "Checking in... right."

He went to put on his shirt, sliding it over his body effortlessly. Biting his lip, the android turned back towards Kamski, hesitant.

"T-Thank you."

Elijah blinked, looking at him quickly, actually surprised. "Oh. You're...welcome."

Despite all the discomfort, Colton managed to give him a smile- genuine, and sweet as he held out his hand.

"So.... I'll see you in a few weeks?"

Kamski seemed hesitant, but slowly reached out, taking his hand.  
"Yeah. See you in a...few weeks."

Noting Kamski's hesitance, his smile only grew- hoping that all the new upgrades he'd just received would be worth all the pain hiding in his new regulator. He gripped Kamski's hand tightly, feeling different and hopefully better than before.

Kamski gave him a hesitant smile as they shook hands, nodding once. He hoped that this would go a lot better than the last time he interfered with Colton's construction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo, running through these logs like nobodies business! Hope you're enjoying them!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's only been a few weeks. Colton doesn't feel right- foreign objects placed inside him. Maybe he should ask for help...
> 
> Where is Conan?

#### Back at the Precinct...

Detective Gavin Reed's eyes were burning in front of the computer; the words were blurring and screaming for rest. He cursed, and rubbed them before reaching one of his hands to an empty cup of coffee. He shook it off to make sure he was run out of coffee before cursing and throw it up to a trash can without dunk it inside. He couldn't care less about everything, and was also too tired to be even angry; he just wanted to go home, but instead he had to do extra hours that no one else could do. Besides, he had to share those extra hours with one of the Anderson's androids: Conan. The most irritable one, and he met Connor. Well, every fucking android in the world was irritable, but Conan was the most.

He sighed, waking up from his lost thoughts, to just keep working.

Conan stood in the empty precinct, the lack of sound unnerving as the entire building remained empty save for those in the prison cells and Detective Reed muttering and clacking away on his computer at his desk. The android disliked the eerie feeling of the wide space being so quiet, and found it almost threatening. He would be stuck here for near two or three more hours to assist Gavin with his work, so he might as well make it less miserable for both of them. The coffee machine sputtered to a finish, bringing Conan out of his thoughts as he poured a cup and quickly snapped a top over it, the warmth of the drink seeping through the fluted cardboard container and into his hand; it was mildly comforting. He walked with swift, even steps towards the Detective's desk, immediately noticing his foul expression.

"Detective Reed, I've brought you a cup of coffee to ensure you remain awake until you've finished your work. I've noticed a slight drop in your heart and breathing rate, which may be a sign of fatigue." He held the coffee out to the disheveled and temperamental man before him.

Gavin heard the footsteps. He heard them and he huffed, ready to snap at him until he saw the cup of coffee. He rolled his eyes to the boring verbiage. He asked himself if the android did those kind of these because he was stupid or was trying to make fun of him

“Yeah, whatever. Gimme that and leave me alone.”

Conan blinked at Gavin's response, having expected the harsh tone and dismissive attitude, setting the coffee down on Gavin's desk.

“What progress have you made on your reports? For our previous three cases I've submitted mine and completed the evidence workups Fowler requested... would you like any help with yours?” He was calm and collected, the Detective's bite not getting to him, being used to it after being stuck with him as a partner since he joined the DPD.

Maybe Gavin was feeling tired or too kind but he just sighed and reached for the coffee. He wasn't going to thank the android, fuck it. He sipped, ignoring the android. The sound of its voice annoyed him just as much as a dog's barks.

“I'm okay. I'm glad you are efficient and all of that shit, just fuck off.”

It came as a surprise to the RK900 that Gavin wasn't more hostile, quirking his head as he studied the exhausted officer and sighed.

“Alright Detective.”

Conan went to sit at his desk across from Gavin's and remained silent, placing his hand on the keyboard and connecting to the system to finish uploading the rest of his word to the DPD's servers.

The detective let out a sigh of relief when the android left. Yes, he was feeling too tired to properly bark at it, but he managed to get it away and got back to work. To be honest, he didn't want to work anymore or could, just, be efficient or shit. Gavin looked at Conan for a moment, trying to rest his exhausted eyes somewhere, and he wondered if he could feel emotions like tiredness. He was supposed to be a deviant, and deviants, technically, could feel.

Conan sat at his desk for a while longer, his LED flickering yellow as he continued with the file transfer. He noticed an odd sensation, a feeling of being watched, and his gaze shifted to see Gavin staring at him completely lost in thought. The android's brow furrowed, his head tilted slightly as he tried to figure out what Gavin could be thinking, and more importantly why his line of sight was fixed on him.

“Detective? Are you alright?”

“Shit..” he mumbled, embarrassed of being caught. He hated it, he couldn't stand its presence and now he got caught staring at them. Fuck his luck. He shook his head, pretending he got back to work even if he couldn't concentrate anymore. 

“The fuck you care about? Fuck off, leave me be.”

But... after a few minutes, his mouth was faster than his mind to stop it. “Do you ever feel tired or you're always this... perfect? Fuck, just forget what I said.”

Gavin's reaction was almost humorous, and Conan couldn't help but notice that he seemed almost... embarrassed. As much as he disliked Gavin, he found him to be rather intriguing, believing there to be some story behind the front of hatred he put up toward others off. Conan sat back in his chair after what he first said, but was surprised to hear him ask him a question.

“Perfect? I'm sorry Detective, I don't understand what you mean.”

Gavin sighed. He was embarrassed. Hopefully he didn't blush easily so his cheeks didn't betray him and he could act more chill. However, now he was cornered; he had to answer the fucking android or (he was pretty sure) it was going to ask about it (indirectly, of course, what's even worse) so, fuck it.

“Well, I think I've explained myself very well-” He raised an eyebrow. “You androids are fucking annoying. I asked it before: Do you even feel tiredness, smartass?”

Conan's LED sputtered in slight confusion as he paused his work for the moment, turning in his chair slightly to look at Gavin behind their two monitors.

“I suppose androids do feel something similar to the fatigue humans experience if stressed, overworked, or damaged; is that what you mean?”

The RK900 blinked innocently, his question lingering in the air as his blue eyes studied the detective to try and understand exactly why he was so interested in asking about his function and whether or not androids can feel physical strain.

“Why do you ask?”

Gavin snorted and made an ironic and nasty laugh. Of course, what was he waiting for? An automatic response, a cold response. Why was he talking to it, anyway? Androids didn't deserve anything, they couldn't feel for real-

“Well, you androids are always bragging about being able to feel. I thought you and your others... uh, what, _brothers_ , you called them? could actually feel. But here you are, not feeling tired, always efficient. Honestly? Fuck you.”

Conan would have sat back, said something simple and carried on with his work, if Gavin hadn't mentioned his brothers of course... The android bristled, clenching his jaw tightly as his LED flashing as a light shiver ran down his spine in irritation. He was the calm one, the responsible one, and here was was about to tear into the snarky detective across from him.

“Physical responses to mental stresses are different than emotions, and I'm unsure you would understand that, Detective Reed, seeing as everything filters out for you as aggression and childish behavior.”

Gavin narrowed his eyes before hitting the table with his fist, hatred burning in his lungs as the words came out with a hiss.

“Don't you dare tell me anything like that ever again, you nasty plastic son of a bitch. Maybe y'all lied to humanity but you won't lie to me: you can't feel anything. Y'all just some cocky plastic pricks that weren't satisfied with being superior and replacing jobs and basically sending humanity to hell, no, you wanted more!”

He stood up suddenly, leaving the android alone and incapable of responding.

Conan leaned back in his chair, watching Reed storm off. He was relieved to see him gone, glad that he wouldn't have to deal with him any more for the night, but found it incredibly inconvenient seeing as he was his partner and would have to pick up his slack; aka, he had to write Gavin's reports now so neither of them would be cornered by Fowler. Sighing, he finished his file upload and began to consolidate Gavin's task, working through them quickly one by one.

* * *

#### Hours Later… late, outside the precinct:

Colton’s hands fidgeted together- as he hesitated doing this. He had to call someone, and the only person he could think of was Conan. He knew he’d been damaged prior to any of it- and it being some time since he got ‘fixed’ by Kamski- Colton could feel a different person roaming around the house. He felt sick about it, being in a body that didn’t feel like his own.

Was it okay to put the pressure on Conan like this? He hadn’t bothered him since the day he'd previously messed up one of his components- knowing Conan had helped him with what felt like a temporary fix of his regulator. Colt’s hand pressed at his abdomen, feeling the new one beat against his skin.

Biting the bullet- he dialed Conan as fast as he could, hoping he didn’t press as much as he was about to tell him.

The youngest brother remained sat in his desk at the DPD, finalizing the last of his added tasks. Work always helped him to focus himself, and especially with his sensory overload he could be overwhelmed easily and found it reassuring to have a mountain of tasks to methodically sort through and complete. He worked like clockwork, moving rhythmically almost and often perfectly autonomously; so the more challenging the task, the more it would help to ease his mind.

The frigid room and the uncomfortable silence had slowly moved to the back of his head as he worked, able to distract himself from how alone and near obsolete it made him feel. As he began to make his way through the final report that Gavin was supposed to do, the familiar ping of a call came through and he paused completely, freezing in place as he checked who it was. It was Colton.

Although slightly confused as to why his brother would be calling so late, he chose not to think much of it, hoping that everything was alright.

**_Colton? Is everything ok?_ **

**_I... I don’t know._ **

Colton could barely keep his voice together, let alone his mind. His fingers trembled on the wheel, gripping it tight of the patrol car he sat in.

**_I need you. I’m... I’m freaking out._ **

His brother's voice shattered the RK900 as he could almost feel the panic that came off in his words, causing him to reflexively stop everything he was doing and stand abruptly out of his chair. It didn't matter what he needed to do, his brother needed him. For what exactly? He didn't know, but honestly it didn't matter to him.

**_Alright, just breathe, where are you?_ **

**_I-I’m parked- n-near the station. I can’t come inside- I won’t make it through the front doors. I don’t want anyone to see me like this._ **

Colton’s hands gripped the wheel tighter, his eyes snapped shut at how foreign his body felt to him right now.

**_I shouldn’t have called- I’m- I’m sorry-_ **

The moment he mentioned his proximity to the station Conan was already out the front of the precinct, looking for the patrol car that Colton used. Once he found it, he took a deep breath and tried to reassure his brother.

**_It's near three in the morning Colton, nobody's here I promise you._ **

Despite not knowing exactly what, he could tell that something was very, very wrong.

**_You can come inside, it's alright._ **

He knew Conan wouldn’t steer him wrong. He hesitated, not speaking for a moment. Colton managed to let go of the steering wheel, taking a deep breath.

**_I’m coming in._ **

Colton turned his car off, opening the door as his breath shuddered from the cold he’d felt at the tips of his fingers. He shut the door immediately, seeing Conan outside the front doors- mentally scolding himself making Conan wait for him outside.

He approached his brother, keeping his eyes away from Conan’s piercing blue, a chill creeping up his spine. He didn’t know how to say it, or what to say. He only hoped Conan would understand.

As the Conan saw Colton walking, he could tell that it was worse than he thought. He walked as if he didn't exactly know how to, stumbling slightly through the snow on the ground, his body stiff and mechanical. The younger brother grew concerned, seeing a blank and alien look in Colton's eyes. It didn't feel, it didn't look like his brother.

“Let's go inside the precinct, it's far warmer in there and you can sit down.”

_What had happened to him?_

Colton's gaze was fixed elsewhere, purposefully avoiding his, and his silence told him enough to understand that this was serious. He put his arm around his brother's shoulder reassuringly, giving a weak smile.

Colton nearly felt his regulator jump out of his chest, ready to burst as he heard Conan’s soft voice bring him back to reality. He glanced up at his words and nodded, seeing his breath pool in front of his face from the cold. He flinched again at Conan’s touch but relaxed into him nodding, stepping inside at Conan’s side.

Conan guided them inside the precinct and sat Colton down in Hank's chair, figuring the familiarity of the desk would comfort him. Thinking for a moment, he rummaged around in the various drawers at their father's desk to find the warm blanket he kept in there for emergencies if Conan got distressed while at work. He draped it over his brother's back and squeezed his shoulders softly to reassure him. Lastly, he rolled his own chair quietly over to sit in front of his brother, slumping his posture to appear less confrontational to avoid adding to his brother's nervousness.

The elder RK800 let Conan lead him to wherever they were going, not really registering what was going on at the moment. He sat- in Hank’s chair, his hands gripping the armrests slightly. He could hear Conan moving quickly around him, a blanket bringing him slightly out of his emotional daze. He blinked softly, at nothing, as he heard the wheeling of a chair and looked up, face to face with his youngest brother. Although... it felt like he deserved to be the oldest.

“Tell me what's wrong.”

“I…” 

Colton hesitated immediately, looking away from Conan’s blue eyes. He felt stupid even worrying him.

“I don’t feel like.... myself.”

Conan tilted his head slightly, his blue eyes blinking with a slight confusion at his brother's statement. He had figured it had something to do with Colton feeling discomfort from something stemming from within him... but he wasn't quite sure exactly what it could be.

“What do you mean?”

Instinctively, he ran a diagnostic of his brother's systems, his LED circling yellow as he found something foreign. Slowly, more and more messages popped up in his vision showing him that there were numerous foreign components within Colton's systems. Sitting up slightly, his expression became slightly more focused and concerned as he took a steadying breath.

“What happened.”

Colton's mouth opened but no sound came out. He bit his lip, trying to figure out the words in his head. His LED swirled between yellow and blue, his thoughts racing.

“E-Elijah Kamski... h-he was- he…”

It was like a whisper, his words breaking on the last name of their creator. His broken hazel eyes turned back towards Conan, unable to keep the eye contact as he looked down, his hands moving to his lap as they fidgeted with each other.

Conan immediately tensed at the name, _Elijah Kamski,_ ringing in his ears. Noticing how difficult it was for Colton to talk, he held out his hand, the synthetic skin retracting slowly up to his wrist as he offered the pearlescent white hand of an android out to calm his brother's shaking hands.

“You don't have to explain it, you can just show me.”

The elder android's eyes shifted to the hand Conan offered him, nearly bringing him to tears. He huffed, a shaky breath escaping him as he nodded, lifting out his own hand as the skin retracted to reveal the same pearlescent white skin of his true body. He took Conan’s hand, closing his eyes as it flashed back-

_Back to the white walls he feared so much, then flashing to Colton eyeing Kamski in the station as Hank stepped between them. The anger he felt when he confronted him in the breakroom, and the confusion to when Kamski offered him his card. The snap of anger at his father- rushing away to be alone..._

_The scene changed to being at Kamski’s door, the fear filling his body like a virus, taking over as he lay on the table and Kamski shut him down...._

Conan jerked backwards slightly as the memory transfer finished, the emotions and pure fear his brother had felt being too much for him to receive so quickly, his LED blinking in distress as his stress level rose momentarily before calming. He noticed his breathing had gotten faster, and he cleared his throat, composing himself as he looked at Colton in surprise.

“He- He replaced your biocomponents?”

The younger brother knew that changing an android's biocomponents was regular, if they weren't a deviant; biocomponent replacement in deviants tended to cause severe emotional instability, and he knew that Kamski knew that.

Colt couldn’t bare to look at Conan, as he kept his eyes closed but moved his head down- opening his eyes as he sucked in a sharp breath, nodding at his question.

“I-I feel like someone else is working my body- n-n-not me and I-I don’t know w-what to do-” He put his face in his hands, sorry he even ever shared.

“I shouldn’t have said anything- I shouldn’t have worried you-”

“Colton it's-”

For once, even the RK900 didn't know exactly what to say. His programs failed at finding a good response and he himself couldn't work out the right thing to do or say. It scared him, hell, it terrified him to know that he couldn't find the best way to help his brother.

“It's ok, Colt- everything's going to be ok. We're going to work this out, I promise you.”

“Is it? Is it really?” Colt's voice sounded so unnatural, the once happy RK a broken mess- and he was showcasing it all finally to Conan.

“I tried to find my own parts- online, through any legal channel and we-... we’re part of the only four RK models active. He said all my biocomponents were going to fail eventually. I can’t die- not yet, I couldn’t take that chance... I couldn’t take that chance for you, or Connor- Colin, oh god.. even Dad…” He shuddered, as he clenched his fists tight in his lap, keeping his head down.

“It is Colton, I swear to you that we're going to fix this.”

Conan had never seen his brother like this, never, and he would be lying if he said it didn't scare him. Because it did. The uncertainty and crippling doubt in Colton's voice unraveled the RK900's cool composition slightly, enough to make it apparent that he was distressed to see his brother like this.

“We can go have him change this, to repair and improve on your old parts and reinsert them or find a way to change how you feel about this.”

Colton gazed up at his brother, blinking wide as he mentioned going back to Kamski’s. He didn’t want to back- until he absolutely had to... it hurt being in those white walls again.

He noticed how distressed Conan was, a feeling of dread in his chest as he realized he was stressing him out. He didn’t want any of that. “I... I can’t. I can’t take the parts out. They’ll let me live- as long as you guys will! I can’t- I can’t sacrifice that....”

“Colton, I know you don't want to go back there…”

He was concerned that Colton wouldn't agree to let him take him to get Kamski to undo what he did, and he figured that it might have to do with his past. Regardless, he needed to help his brother, and he needed to find a way to convince him.

“We can find a way to get him to keep your old parts running as long as these would, or get these to feel less- foreign, alright?” 

Colton shook his head furiously, closing in on himself as he stifled a sob. “Kamski, himself, said that they’d break down. My old parts are useless. I don’t even know h-how we’d even make these parts feel less foreign.”

Conan reached forward, grabbing his brother's hand and squeezing softly to bring him back to focus. “We have to try something, and going to him is our best starting option.” He didn't like the idea of going to ask for help from Kamski any more than Colton did, but he knew it was necessary.

The movement brought Colton back to reality, looking directly at his brother now- his hand clenched in his. The touch was calming, to say the least. He took a deep breath, calming down slightly.

“I don’t know. I d-don’t like the thought of bringing you there.”

Conan smiled slightly, his piercing blue eyes softening in Colton's hazel gaze as he could feel his brother calming down. “I'll be alright, please don't worry about me, all I want right now is to figure this out and to get you back to normal.”

“You know I have to worry about you. I feel like you forget I’m older than you.” Colton huffed, keeping his eyes on Conan’s as he gripped his hand tighter. Colton let out a deep breath, and shook his head once- calmly.

“I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

The RK900 felt out of place as the younger brother, despite being taller, the most advanced (save for Colton's updated parts), and- and the brother that looked different than all the others. The one that didn't belong. If something happened to him, it would be ok, it wasn't like he exactly fit anyway? Protecting his brothers was all that mattered.

“Nothing will happen to me Colton, I promise." His smile was strained, and his grip on his brother's hand was firm but unsteady. Something ticked inside him, constantly reminding him of his differences, and now knowing that Colton felt the same way, absolutely destroyed him. It was his job to look after him, and it was his purpose to help him.

The hesitation was visible, feeling Conan’s strained smile come from left field. Colton bit his lip- arguing in his head that this was the right call. If Conan was there, he’d be okay.... right?

“I-.... okay. I won’t hesitate to get you out if something happens.”

Conan tried a chuckle, not sure if it would help to alleviate the tension in the space between them. It didn't, in fact it made him feel worse.

“Alright, but nothing will happen Colton, I'm sure of it.” He nodded although a heavy weight settled onto his chest. If something happened- he would be there to stop it. No matter what.

A heavy sigh escaped the RK800-01 as he looked straight into his brothers eyes.

“Okay. If you say so. Let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We finally get to see where the other brothers are- woo!
> 
> Long-ish chapter. Formatting from Google Docs is e h
> 
> Also if it wasn't easy to tell, Conan is the youngest of the RKs being that he is the newest model. Next comes Colin or the 'Connor' model that took Hank hostage, followed by Connor himself. Leaving Colton as the oldest model due to his number starting at 01. We managed to write the very first memory of Colton's so that'll be up soon!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conan and Colton go to confront Elijah Kamski about what he'd done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been established canonically that the brothers all share an open mind link which they can communicate silently through to each other. It's made apparent by the **bold text** without quotations. Hope that clears anything up while you're reading!

The brothers arrive at Kamski's manor, and soon they were stood outside his front door. A cold bite stabbed at Conan's fingertips as the snow twisted through the air in patterns the android couldn't help but notice to be rather violent and odd. Hesitantly, he knocked, keeping some distance between him and the door, while also keeping Colton slightly behind him in case he needed to step in front of him defensively.

Only a few moments later, Chloe opened the door, head tilting slightly as she saw them. "Colton. RK900. What can I do for you?"

Colton had been hidden away behind Conan’s taller frame, blinking as the door opened. The Chloe model greeted them, and he was somewhat surprised she didn’t call him by his model name.

He looked up to his brother, waiting for him to speak first.

Conan blinked, unfazed by the use of his model name, finding an odd and shameful comfort in it as it. His programming was different to his brothers', it was stronger, and it made it far more difficult for him to deviate; despite being able to push past his limits, he still found it difficult to maintain and express natural human like behavior. The use of 'RK900' to address him gave him a feeling of detachment from himself, and from the overwhelming whirl of emotions he sometimes experienced; it felt right.

“We're here to see Mr. Kamski.”

His voice was plain, his statement blunt. He wasn't unkind or short, but his response seemed off for him, it sounded rather machine like.

She stepped back a bit more, holding the door open. "Since you don't have an appointment, I will need to have you two stay in the waiting room while I let him know, if that's ok."

Colt placed a hand on Conan’s back as Chloe opened the door wider. It trembled against his brothers back, clutching the fabric of his coat slightly. “T-That’s fine.” He could barely keep his voice above a whisper, staying behind Conan.

The younger brother waited for a moment, watching Chloe cautiously as she opened the door wider for them. He could feel Colton's hand trembling against his back, the fabric of his jacket tightening around his chest is his brother wound it firmly into his nervous grasp to steady himself. Hesitantly, Conan stepped past the other android with Colton in tow behind him, keeping him close and on the opposite side to Chloe.

The room they entered was decently sized for a lobby of sorts, the inflated portrait of Kamski rather gaudy in Conan's opinion. He walked his brother over to on of the chair, sitting him down and squeezing his hand gently to give him something to anchor himself with. The RK900 remained standing at the side of the chair, like a watchdog of sorts as they would wait.  


Chloe watched them settle themselves in, giving them a polite nod, before she turned and walked down another hallway, the door closing automatically behind her, leaving the two of them alone in the cold, impersonal lobby.

The eldest RK let Conan guide him into the waiting room, trying to keep his eyes on Conan’s back. He felt his gentleness, leading him to one of the chairs. He sat down, holding onto his youngest brother’s hand, feeling a comfort radiate from having someone else there. Someone especially like Conan.

Colt let out a heavy, shuddery sigh as he looked around- remembering the place as if he had visited yesterday.

He watched as Chloe left them alone in the room.

“W-What are you going to say to him?”

Conan studied the room while in thought, hearing his brother's question and sighing. He really didn't know, he could go about doing this in several different ways, and he just couldn't understand which one to go with. A part of him wanted to ask politely for help, while another wanted to pin the playboy down and cause him to suffer in the exact ways that he had caused Colton to. His LED twinkled amber in a slight shock as the thought crossed his mind, clenching his free hand slightly as he tried to understand why he had felt such a strong feeling of anger. It was in defense of his brother, it had to be... it wasn't like him, he would never think or act like that otherwise.

“I'll explain to him what the issue is, and he'll fix it. Then we'll leave.”

It only took a few minutes, but Kamski shuffled through the door, Chloe close behind him. He honestly looked like he'd just been woken up, his hair not even up in a bun at all, deep bags under his eyes. "Colton, what's, what's up? It's only been a few weeks...."

Colton noticed the way Conan’s face furrowed, squeezing the hand he held in an effort to try and calm him. Before he could speak, he turned, to see Chloe and Kamski walk out. The way Kamski said his name made a chill go down his spine and he stood immediately, at his question.

“I- I…”

He could barely get the words out as he put a hand to his chest, taking a deep breath.

Conan stepped swiftly in front of his brother as he stood, before he could even attempt to try to speak again, not wanting him to force himself to try when he felt as nervous as he did; additionally, his tall frame helped to cover his older brother from Kamski's line of sight, making it easier for Colton to feel less pressured.

“You replaced a deviant's biocomponents Mr. Kamski, and I'm sure that you're fully aware of the consequences of doing so.”

He just stared blankly at the taller Android in front of him, blinking blearily. "Yes, I'm aware."

The moment Conan stepped in between him and Kamski, he blinked. Colton could barely get a word out being there, and it made him slightly upset. Why couldn’t he do this?

Colt pressed his head against Conan’s back, shutting his eyes as his younger brother took over the conversation for the both of them.

Conan visibly tensed, his posture rigid all of a sudden as he bristled at Kamski's words, and how he seemed to completely disregard what he had done.

"Do you mean to tell me, that you replaced my brother's components while fully aware what would happen?"

The RK900's tone wasn't harsh, but it had a certain bite to it which would crawl under your skin and send a sharp shiver down your spine. It was calm, but venomous.

Kamski felt himself stand up a bit straighter at the Android's words, gaze sharpening as well. "Emotional instability is what deviants are known for. I weighed the pros and cons of letting him leave with outdated, failing biocomponents against giving him new, perfectly functioning ones, and this is the conclusion I came to."

Colton could feel the venom in Conan’s voice, grabbing at his coat again. Was Kamski only being nice? Why didn’t he tell him about the side-effects of being upgraded? Was this more pain to add the the memory that he knew Kamski held over his head?

His hands clenched slightly, a heat beginning to rise in his chest. It wasn’t sadness.... it was anger.

Conan matched Kamski's even glare, their eyes locked and slicing right through each other.

"Finding a way to repair his existing components to prolong their durability was the best approach you could have taken, leaving him with this instability in his software did more harm than good Kamski. This can significantly affect his stress levels, and it's common knowledge what happens to androids whose stress levels are too high."

His LED blared a vicious amber, his position firm and his words cold and unforgiving.

"Fix him. Now."

"If I'd taken the time to fix them instead of replacing them, he would have been here for hours, possibly days. He'd made it perfectly clear he didn't want to be here longer than he had to. So I opted to do the easier option for the both of us." Elijah folded his arms, eyes narrowing venomously.  


"And, what. Leaving him with his old biocomponents, knowing that I could've done something about it, that's better? Knowing he would eventually have to get them replaced, probably in a higher state of panic than he was already? I saved everyone involved the trouble." And he stood a step back, glancing at Chloe, then back at RK900.  


"I don't consider slapping old parts back in 'fixing'. So, no. Now get out of my house."

The feeling rose in the elder RK's chest, listening to Kamski explain why he did what he did. His hand was clutched hard at Conan’s back as he stepped from behind his brother, eyes up and looking at Kamski.

“I didn’t want to be here in the first place! You could have said no to helping me, but you did! Why did you? Don’t tell me you feel BAD for me?”

This same feeling fueled him, the fear replaced with nothing but anger. Frustration. All the things he was feeling- raising his level of stress already too easily.

Conan's mouth opened to say something, then snapped shut as he heard Colton speaking suddenly from behind him, seeing him dart out in the corner of his eye to stand next to him. He could already register his stress level skyrocketing, placing an arm in front of his brother as a barrier or sorts, his eyes still firmly locked on the former CEO in front of him.

**Colton, you need to breathe.**

"You chose to do the bare minimum, the most convenient thing for yourself, just enough to be considered a 'hero' for 'saving' his life when in fact you've severely limited it. If you sought forgiveness then you went about finding it the wrong way.” Conan began again.

"I don't do anything to make myself a hero, RK900, let me get that perfectly straight." He snapped, glaring at the taller android. "He asked me to help him, so I did. I helped a little bit more, and now you have the nerve to come into my house and yell at me about it? Ok, it's upsetting, and for that I'm sorry, but I'm not sorry that I did it, and I'm not putting the old biocomponents back in, because then in a few months you'll come screaming to me about how they're starting to fail. I'm not going to repeat myself again. Get out of my house."

“We aren’t leaving. Why didn’t you tell me this was going to happen to me??” Colton’s voice rose slightly, his LED flashing yellow with the anger rushing through his blue blooded veins. He took a step forward, into the arm Conan was using to hold him back.

He heard Conan tell him to breath but he couldn’t. He couldn’t think of breathing. All he could feel was the anger.

**I can’t.**

Conan's anger dissipated slightly as Colton's replaced his own, feeling the pressure of his brother's movement against his arm increase as he took a step forward.

**Raising your stress levels in dangerous, especially in your condition.**

Conan's jaw clenched, his right foot shuffling slightly in place as he calmed, despite maintaining a rigid and assertive posture.

"Mr. Kamski, we just want you to fix him, by any means necessary. I understand you are fully capable of finding a way."

"And maybe I am, but you woke me up to yell at me and insult me, and yet you're still standing in my lobby." The former CEO snapped, scowling at them.  
"I'm not exactly feeling buttered up."

Something burst in Colton’s chest, as he clenched his jaw, pushing past his younger brother. The LED gave away his current emotions, the fire burning in his chest as he confronted Kamski- the fear of the white walls disappearing before flames engulfing the scene in his head.

“Who gives a FUCK if you’re not feeling buttered up?? The ONLY reason you even fucking helped me is cause you felt bad for me, didn’t you? You DISMANTLED ME- you KILLED me!”

Conan tried to protest against his brother's outburst, the words of warning dying on his lips after he heard what Colton had said. Dismantled him? The words clicked into place, Colton's odd behavior around Kamski making sense. He had been the one to dismantle him that day.

"Colton-"

He reached forward, grabbing his brother by his shoulder and taking a step forward to hold him back.

"You need to calm down."

He stepped back, actually startled by the older Android's outburst, and Chloe took a step forward, her brows furrowed.  
Kamski frowned at the accusations, turning his gaze from RK900 to Colton finally, his jaw working as he clenched his hands. "Maybe that is why!"

Colton’s eyes narrowed at Kamski’s next choice of words. He felt Conan try to keep him back, away from doing something stupid. His glare darted towards Conan at his side as he told him to calm down, then back to Kamski.

**I can’t go back now. Not ever.**

“Tell me! Why didn’t you feel that when I watched you order them to take me apart? I’m not some DEFECT.”

**Provoking him in this way will accomplish nothing, please... just, take a breath for a moment.**

Conan grew nervous, having never seen this sudden flare of anger spark in his brother before. It was unlike what he might've expected to be when he was angry- this was something else completely, it was vicious. He kept his arm firmly in front of his brother, his blue gaze flitting down to the other RK's smaller form at his side.

"Because you were just a blip on a factory line, Colton! The first Android I ever made who behaved wrong! I didn't know what to do, so yeah, I pressed that button and had you taken apart! But that's not what you are anymore, Androids are different and so are you!"

“So- w-what? You were SCARED of me?”

Colton pressed his body against Conan’s stiff arm- anger blinding him from his brother’s words of warning. He could barely feel his fingers, let alone care about seeing his stress level go up- farther then it’d been before.

“After all I went through- NOW I’M DIFFERENT?? NOW I’M SPECIAL?? Why couldn’t I be that BEFORE??”

He felt helpless, unable to stop the conflict between the creator in front of them and his fuming sibling next to him. Colton's stress level was rising to a dangerous point, and he knew that if he didn't calm this down now then the likelihood of him self destructing would be incredibly high.

**Colton please- Don't do this.**

"Would that make you feel better?"! He hissed through his teeth. "If I was scared of you? Because maybe I was! Maybe I felt like an Android acting the way you did was scary, I didn't know how to deal with it, so I panicked and pushed the button! And maybe I consider that one of my biggest mistakes!"

Before Colton could continue- Kamski’s words took him off guard. He blinked wide at that, the heat still there in his chest. He gritted his teeth, hearing Conan’s words echo in his head- a heavy weight on his shoulders.

**I’m so angry... I don’t know how to stop- please.**

“Are you still SCARED of ME??”

Colton's words to his brother and Kamski were starkly different, and Conan could hardly believe that they were coming from the same person.

**Just block him out, block everything out- focus on one thing.**

He had to find a way to get Colton to stop, at any cost.

"I think there's been a misunderstanding as to what both parties' intentions are, and I think it best if we left now and come back later to resolve this at a more appropriate time..."

"DO YOU WANT ME TO BE?!"  
Elijah yelled, and even Chloe looked shocked at his outburst. "Would that help?! Would that make you feel better, if I was scared of you!?"

“I-....I....”

Colton’s stress was the highest it could have ever been as his LED finally flashed the dangerous red, rapidly.

“I DON’T KNOW!”

He shouted the words out, his voice breaking at the end of his outburst- matching Kamski’s volume. Conan’s words were drowned- the warning sign flashing high and bright in his eyes.

“EVERY TIME I THINK ABOUT THAT DAY, IT HURTS ME-“

Colton sucked in a sharp breath, a sob threatening to break free.

He shuddered at his brother's shout, the yell surprising him as he watched Colton's LED flicked to the telltale red flicker. This was getting out of hand, he needed to do something, and fast. Kamski would only continue to provoke him, and Colton was completely unable to control his emotions and would be prone to responding to Kamski's outbursts with his own. Conan's own LED began to flicker a faster amber in distress as the pressure of the situation got to him, a shrill ringing in his ears sounding as even the slight rattle of Kamski's breath felt like a drum inside of his head. Colton's words sounded again and again, the retorts that came from the man in front of them and the broken and terrified expression feeling underneath Colton's outer shell of hostility seeping underneath his synthetic skin as thoughts began to swim.

"Colt-"

His voice caught, his head pounding painfully as he could feel Colton's shaky breath in his own chest, the feeling of being on the brink of tears overwhelming. He was failing at the one purpose he was given after losing his initial mission, to protect his brothers no matter what. The eldest RK model was about to shut down in a state of pure terror and confusion, and he couldn't do anything.

“IT HURTS ME.... it hurts me so m-much....”

_Stop..._

His voice was broken in his head, barely making a sound under Colton's yelling.

“I don’t know what I even want from you.”

_STOP._

"THAT'S ENOUGH!"

The RK900's roar echoed through the room, his voice rising to a volume which he had never reached before, his out exclamation shocking hims slightly. He shuddered, his extended arm stiffening as he clenched his fists, glaring furiously at Kamski.

Kamski actually jumped back, his own retort dying in his mouth as the taller Android bellowed, the room almost seeming to shake from the force of it, and he stared blankly at RK900 in shock. Chloe shifted uncomfortably next to him, a little spooked by the force of it.

Colton flinched harshly at Conan’s outburst, eyes darting to his now furious brother. The LED became more rapid in flashing, the levels on his stress at a percentage so high- he was surprised he was still living.

The tears began to flow freely, as he felt a sort of disorientation wash over him. His breath hitched in his throat, as Conan stood tall next to him.

"I don't understand how you can claim to believe that androids are different, that we are alive, and then be intent to run your _manipulative fucking mouth_ until my brother drops to the floor."

The profanity in his words was far out of character for Conan, and it made him all the more uncomfortable to have been brought to the edge of a fury so hot enough that he would break from his norm to say something like that.

"I am taking my brother home now and you and I will be meeting tomorrow again to discuss this while he stays as far away from you as possible until you get yourself together and help him- unless you'd rather stand idly by and watch him die again."

He looked like he wanted to speak, mouth opening and closing a few times as he tried to think of a response: He wouldn't admit it but he was rather spooked by how he was being spoken to by the taller Android. Chloe looked definitely unhappy, like she was about to start shouting herself, but he looked at her, putting a hand out and shaking his head to stop her.  


"Fine. Don't let the door hit you on the way out." He drawled out bitterly, before turning and striding off down the other hallway. Chloe gave them a curt, unhappy nod, before walking after him, her heels clicking loudly on the stone flooring.

Conan’s words pierced Colton's chest, harder than they should have. His eyes were wide as he’d stopped breathing- the world in his eyes feeling slow- almost even stopping. He heard Kamski’s voice in the distance, as his vision blurred.

“C-Conan...”

His voice sounded foreign in to his ears, as he fell to his knees- the whole world spinning in his head.

Conan's glare remained unwavering as he watched Kamski leave the lobby with Chloe in tow, his arm lowered as his fists clenched white at his sides. It took him longer than it should have to realize that Colton was falling to his knees, and by the time he did his brother was already on the ground. The younger RK knelt hurriedly, shaking his brother's shoulders to keep him focused.

"Hey, I'm right here Colton, just focus on my voice."

He cursed under his breath, again out of character as he read Colton's stress levels.

"Can you put yourself into a standby mode, just until we get home?"

Colton’s eyes were unfocused as he felt someone shaking his shoulders. He barely registered Conan’s worried voice, but it was piercing through his near shut down mode.

He heard ‘stand by’ and he simply nodded, wavering slightly before falling into Conan’s arms, eyes finally falling closed.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conan wanted Kamski to fix his older brother and he came to do that. Kamski, however, has other plans...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When this was being roleplayed live, we let the audience choose Conan's next action so you might see that in here!

The next day, Kamski felt himself puttering around the Manor, annoyed that the RK900 hadn't specified an actual time: he could come anywhere between 8AM to 8PM, and if he didn't want to be a sleepy mess, he'd have to be awake for the entire duration.

That's not to say he was just going to let the Android walk all over him. The behaviour he'd displayed the previous day was....very interesting. He hadn't had as much of a hand in the 900's design as he had the 800, and he was curious to see how it worked. Perhaps it was time to run his favourite test again....

It seemed the same as the day before, the unnerving feeling the manor gave Conan causing him to shiver while the cold of the blizzard outside bit at his fingertips. He stood outside, staring cautiously at the door before he approached, the fresh white blanket on the path breaking beneath his feet, his footsteps light but confident as he made his way to the front porch. 

Pausing, he considered the exterior of the building a little more closely, finding it's simplistic nature rather off putting and a ruse for what it contained inside; Kamski. The man was a puzzle the android couldn't quite piece fully together, and he hated it. He was smart, cunning, and illogical. With great reluctance, Conan raised his hand to the door, wavering for a moment before knocking twice.

Strangely enough, when the door opened, it wasn't Chloe, but Kamski himself. His hair was immaculate, and his face perfectly clean shaven, and he gave him a half smirk in greeting, though it didn't reach his eyes. This was going to be an interesting day.

"RK900. Still don't think I actually know your designation."

Conan studied the man before him, the differences in his demeanor and appearance striking when in comparison to how he looked the day prior. He didn't like the idea of him using the name he was given by his family, it would sound wrong, and mocking on his lips. A light shiver ran down his spine even as his used his model name, the smirk cold and unforgiving.

"Conan. My name is Conan."

"Conan. Good to meet you. Come on in." He hummed, stepping away from the doorframe, and he walked inside, knowing the Android would follow.

The android stepped through the door, his confidence wavering as he saw the interior of the building again. He wondered how Colton could have possibly come here on his own, especially with the past he had with Kamski. Conan remained silent, following Kamski as he walked further into the building.

Kamski stayed silent, feed padding softly on the stone floor as they walked, and he was glad for the climate control in his house, or he wouldn't have had the confidence to be barefoot.

"I find you very interesting, Conan. You're one of the first Androids released that I had almost no influence over, in terms of design, or software. Unlike your brothers, I don't know what makes you tick."

Conan became slightly on edge at Kamski's words, finding his curiosity dangerous, and unpredictable. Although he appreciate that Kamski had no influence on his design, he also despised it, seeing as it was just another thing that separated himself from his brothers; his appearance, programming, and now designer were all starkly different to his siblings, and he hated that.

"I don't quite understand what you're insinuating Mr. Kamski."

He headed into what could've passed for a dining room, given its proximity to the nearby kitchen, but all the furniture was removed, save for a single, small side table with a cloth over it, concealing something underneath. Chloe was in there, and surprisingly, she didn't look as stoic as she normally did, almost looking nervous.

"The Turing test is so obsolete it's hilarious. What I'm insinuating, or, proposing, is this. You take my test, and I'll fix Colton."

Conan stood in the room, the somewhat emptiness of it giving him chills. He didn't like Kamski's tone, the way he seemed too calm, and almost too interested in him.

"What exactly is your test."

The android's LED spun amber, shuddering under the discomfort he was feeling.

The smile he gave Conan was almost unsettlingly emotionless, and he turned to the table, shifting the cloth and pulling out whatever it was. Walking over to Conan, he held it out - a handgun.

"If you shoot Chloe, I'll fix all the biocomponents I took out of Colton, and put them back in. If you don't, I do nothing."

Conan's gaze fixed on the handgun, his entire body stiffening as he watched Kamski carry the firearm over to him. Warnings shot through his body like lightning as Kamski spoke, and the android gave him a disgusted and terrified look. He was forcing him to choose between two lives.

"You're sick."

His head was pierced with a shrill whine, causing for him to shudder as the dim light of the room reflected off the immaculately polished surface of the handgun. It was almost too well kept.

He tilted his head, expression not changing, and eventually he forced the gun into Conan's hand, raising it to point it at Chloe, who scrunched her eyes shut in fear. "Maybe I am. But now you need to make your choice. Her life, or his."

  


**Make your choice...**

Shoot her - 22 votes  
**Spare her - 24 votes**

The decision has been made, and it is final... and a tie swings in favor of.....

  


Conan's knuckles whitened around the the revolver, his hand trembling lightly as he watched Chloe's eyes squeeze shut. The ringing in his ears ceased, and everything was perfectly silent; the room before him was frozen in time. Faintly, his heartbeat sounded through his chest, irregular and strained. Conan's body went stiff as he stood rigidly in place, his arm outstretched with the barrel of the gun pinpointed at Chloe's head. He couldn't shoot her, could he? It wouldn't be right, she was- she was alive.

_Shoot her._

The RK900 braced his shoulder, his finger wavering on the trigger. If he shot her, then Colton would be saved, but if he didn't-

Nothing else matters but the mission.

His head spun with doubt, the feeling rooting itself in his chest as he tried to convince himself of his priorities. There was no way out of this, he had to choose. Conan's cold blue eyes glinted with confusion, his LED blaring a deep scarlet as he clicked the gun back with his thumb, the sound deafening in the room. The sound felt to him like a gunshot in itself, the noise signifying the decision of execution. He couldn't do this- Colton would- Colton would never forgive him.

_Shoot her now._

Conan's arm fell, the gun still clutched firmly in his hand as he took a shaky breath, the sights off of the terrified android before him. It didn't feel right to him- He couldn't choose one life over another. It was wrong. Something in his head clicked and his wavering hand steadied. What did it matter how he felt- Colton was the only thing that mattered.

He blinked, his form steady and his posture straightened, a blank look crossing his face as his icy irises darkened with an inhuman like shine to them. He just had to ensure his brother's safety, after all, that was his mission.

And he was just a machine designed to accomplish his task.

In one fluid movement, Conan's arm raised, the barrel pointed perfectly at Chloe's head as his finger squeezed tightly around the trigger.

The gun clicked.

It was a blank.

There was a long, silent pause as Kamski watched him, face unreadable, before he reached out, putting his hand on the gun. Chloe slowly relaxed, but she didn't look up as she stood, briskly walking out of the room and refusing to meet Conan's eye.

"Tell Colton to call and make an appointment. I'll keep my schedule clear. You can go." He said, voice even, almost sounding bored now.

Conan followed Chloe with his gaze as she quickly left the room, and he could almost see her physically shaking. He blinked, oddly calm for what just happened as he loosened his iron grip on the gun to allow Kamski to retrieve it. His jaw clenched, reaching with steady hands to straighten his collar as he turned on his heel without a word, walking to the front of the manor. Conan lingered in the doorway, refusing to look back at the psychopath behind him.

"He won't call, we're coming back tomorrow."

His voice was firm, not demanding, but definite.

"No. He calls, or you get turned away at the door, RK900." His voice was equally firm. "I'm not repeating myself."

"Then he will call you tonight."

Conan disliked Kamski's tone, especially for what he had done to jeopardize his mission and his relationship with his brother. "I suggest you be very careful with what you do Elijah."

He just tilted his head, a single brow raising as he watched the Android. "Are you threatening me, RK900?"

Conan rolled his shoulders back irritably, turning his head to flick his searing gaze to the engineer behind him.

"I guess I am."

"Then maybe I'm not the one who needs to be careful." He said simply, winking at Conan, before he firmly closed the door, leaving him alone outside in the snow.

Conan remained stood on the porch of the manor, his gaze fixed blankly on the door in front of him for a moment before he turned to leave, trudging back to the patrol car. Everything was alright, he had gotten Kamski to agree to fixing Colton, and the shot ended up being a blank. He had made the right decision.

Hadn't he?


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connor comes home.

Light peered through the cracks of the closed blinds, illuminating the dark room. There, tangled in the covers of the small bed, lay Colton- his chest raising slowly, mimicking his soft breathing. His eyes were nearly closed, as he stared up at the off white ceiling of his room.

He’d been awake for some time, watching the sun rise and peer through his window, as he moved for the first time since being carried into his room. He felt terrible about Conan, about everything actually. If he hadn’t confronted Kamski in the first place- maybe he wouldn’t have put his youngest brother in harm's way.

Colton swung his legs over the edge of the bed slowly, his clothes wrinkled and unkempt, his hair a mess more than it usually was. He stood up, nearly stumbling as he put a hand on the wall to steady himself. He made his way to the living-room, unable to stay in the dark abyss of his room...

* * *

A few months since the revolution, Connor had the joy of accompanying Markus, and the rest of the Jericho crew to Washington in an effort to bring rights to all androids across America. It had been exhausting to say the least, and had he been human, he wasn’t even sure if he would've survived. Many of his own kind still saw him as somewhat of a traitor fighting against deviants for majority of the war. Markus though always had faith in him, which lessened the tensions to some degree. But finally, after all this time, his kind was truly free. They could own their own property, they could marry (human or their own kind) and they could work any job they saw fit. It was an amazing time and it brought Connor a lot of joy. 

Finally making his way to his home... With his brothers.... brought the biggest smile to Connor's face. He sighed and gently opened the front door.

* * *

Colton creaked his bedroom door open, stepping out- as he saw he was alone in the house. He assumed Conan had gone to speak with Kamski and he let out a heavy sigh. The mere thought made him anxious-

Suddenly, he heard the front door open- hoping it was Conan with some good news but to his dismay, and surprise- it was Connor. He froze where he stood, blinking wide in his disheveled appearance.

Connor breathed a sigh of relief, even if he didn't need to breathe, it just brought him a sense of comfort that he needed. He noticed how dark the house actually was now.

He was assuming everyone was out doing their own thing, but that didn't stop Connor from this moment of clarity. It was then he noticed an LED amidst in the darkness. He looked up to see who it was and couldn't help but smile when he was able to make out Colton's disheveled appearance. While he wondered why he looked this way, he couldn't help but smile at his older brother.

"I'm home."

Despite all he’d been through the last few days, a smile managed to crack open on the RK800-01's face. He stepped forward, nearly stumbling as his walk turned into a run.

Connor couldn't help but chuckle a bit as he saw Colton begin to walk towards him. He noticed that the walk picked up into a run. He was still holding his luggage and other items that he took on the trip.

Colt nearly lunged himself at Connor, his regulator beating wildly as he wrapped his arms around his waist tightly, hiding his face in Connor’s shirt. He didn’t know what to say- the warmth that rose up in his chest made him want to cry.

"W-Wait, Colton I'm holding all my stuff!-" 

Connor instantly dropped all his belongings and managed to grab a hold of Colton. He managed to stay upright, but just barely stumbling a bit back in the process. He couldn't help but chuckle and squeezed his brother tightly.

"Yeah, yeah, I missed you too." His tone soft as he he pressed a kiss on top of Colton's head.

Connor’s sheer presence made Colton begin to shake, as his chuckle made it worse. He took a deep breath as he tried not to cry, so happy to see him...

The kiss on his head sent his emotions into overdrive- and he lost it.

“Connor- oh my- I missed you so much- so much has happened- I can’t-“ 

Colt’s words stumbled over themselves as he tried to speak, not wanting to let go of his brother. He’d already started to cry from the overwhelming emotions engulfing him.

Seeing Colton's disheveled appearance up close nearly broke Connor's heart in two. When he saw the tears in Colton's eyes, he smiled sadly and brought a hand up to Colton's cheek and wiped them away.

"Hey, don't worry. I'm here and that's all that matters. One word at a time, I'm not going anywhere for a long time. I promise..." 

He continued to wipe Colton's tears away, and decided to kiss his brother on his forehead. Colton needed this, and Connor was more than willing to ease his brother’s nerves.

At Connor’s touch, the elder RK took a deep breath, his eyes closing tightly as his brother kissed his forehead. A short wave of relief washed over his body as he managed to stop shaking.

“Please- you have to pinky promise. I-.... I have so much to tell you....”

Colton bit his lip, emotions fighting over who would prevail in his chest.

“I think I messed up.”

Connor raised up his pinky and held it out interlocking both of their pinkies together.

"Pinky promise." Hearing Colton's words made Connor tilt his head slightly wondering what could bring his brother to act this way. Connor really had missed a lot, not being able to keep in contact with his brothers. He couldn't help feeling a bit guilty. He wished he could have called them, but with all the media and meetings he had, he just couldn't find the time.

"Messed up? Colton, what's wrong?"

He decides to guide them into the couch, but still holding his brother close to comfort him.

“I... “

He didn’t know how to start. It’d all been so much the last few days. He felt Connor holding him strong, leading to the couch. Colton followed his brothers movements, sitting down right next to him.

The pinky promise lingered on his skin, the warmth winning so far then anything else. He just decided to say the name.

“I... I talked to Elijah Kamski. He came to the precinct.”

The sound of that name made Connor shiver. He did not like that man. Everything about him was a contradiction that made Connor confused, and he didn't like to feel that way. When he was forced to either shoot or spare Chloe, he just couldn't bring himself to do it. At the time, he didn't know why, but now it was as clear as day. If something had happened between Kamski and Colton, he was sure it was not pleasant and that notion made Connor's heart ache. He was determined to find the root cause of Colton's distress. He would stop at nothing to make his brothers happy. He looked up to Colton with calm, yet determined eyes. 

"What occured? You need to tell me everything Colton. I understand how Kamski can be. I'm only here to help, you know I would do anything for you."

Colton immediately hesitated at Connor’s words as he looked away, unable to meet his direct gaze. He took a deep breath, his LED going from blue to the warning yellow. It seems like his LED gave him away too fast.

“I damaged my regulator... a while ago. I couldn’t find a replacement- anywhere. I tried so hard to find one...”

He took a deep breath, struggling to continue.

“Kamski came to the precinct- and I just, got so angry even seeing him there. One thing led to another and.... he replaced my biocomponents. He replaced nearly all of them.”

“I can barely eat- barely sleep- I told Conan what happened and... it just... it spiraled out of control...”

Colton closed his eyes as he finished speaking. His chest hurt. Everything hurt.

Connor noticed the yellow LED and began rubbing circles on Colton's back in an effort to calm his brother down. He listened, wincing when he heard of his damaged biocomponents. He mentally cursed himself for not being there to protect his brothers. He couldn't blame himself now though, what's done was done, and now Connor had to fix this. They needed him now more than ever. After Colton finished his story, Connor sighed, and smiled solemnly at Colton. He brought him into yet another hug and whispered into Colton's ear. He knew if he seemed upset that would only bring his brother down. 

Suddenly, Colton blinked as he felt Connor’s arms wrap around him again. The touch made him shudder, as he was brought close to his brother’s side. Colt leaned into him, listening to all the words he said.

"I'm sorry... We'll fix this. All of it. I won't rest until everything is resolved... We'll figure something out for your biocomponents. A way to make them to feel comfortable, or anything. You need to have faith in that. I can only do so much, but just know that I would do anything for you. You guys are my family. The only one I have... well, really the only one I'll ever need. Where's Conan? I noticed no one was home but you... would you know where he is?"

A few tears fell, silently as Connor spoke in his ear softly, his voice as soothing as it always was. With a sniffle, Cotlon nodded- taking a deep breath to answer his question about Conan.

“We went to go confront Kamski about what happened. I... I nearly shut down. He said that they were going to talk about getting my biocomponents replaced. He should be back by now....”

Connor sighed and continued to rub small circles on Colton's back. He kept them there for a moment before letting go slightly in order to look Colton directly. He still held Colton closed and smiled lightly.

"When he gets here, we'll figure something out..."

Even with those words Connor grew worried… He worried about Conan. With knowing the dirty games Kamski plays, he knew that something was wrong. He knew it was his job to fix this. After all… He beat Kamski's game once. He was sure he could help his brothers out in some way..

"Just know Colton, that I'm here for you, Sorry it took so long, but things will get better. They always do..." 

He smiled genuinely at Colton and rubbed his brothers cheek a bit in a comforting manner.

Colt bit his lip but sighed at Connor’s words. He was just as concerned as he was for Conan. He never felt like the big brother... it was always one of them instead.

“I hope you’re right.”

Connor looked at Colton reassuringly and nodded. 

"I usually always am."

The RK800-51 smiled a little cheekily trying to lighten up the tension a bit, that's when he felt a presence near. It felt… Dark?.... Alone? He couldn't describe it but it made his head hurt slightly. He looked to the door, and noticed that it was coming from that direction… Just what was behind that? He felt like he knew who it was, but it felt so lost and...mechanical, it almost hurt him.

Conan stood at the door to the house, lingering as he wasn't sure if he should enter; after what he just did, it didn't feel right. He felt numb, and he didn't want to have his brothers see him like this, let alone have Hank see him like this. Clearing his throat softly, he straightened his posture, clearing any sign of distress from his expression and reached for the door handle, slowly creaking the door open and stepping inside.

Colton straightened up- feeling Connor’s discomfort as he looked at the door. Before he could ask what was wrong, the door opened- and there came Conan.

His eyes widened, as he rushed out of Connor’s embrace and rushed to his youngest brother- nearly slamming into him as he did with Connor earlier.

“Conan! W-What happened?? Are you okay??” The words spilled out haphazardly, as Colton felt all sorts of things again in his chest.

Connor was shocked to his youngest brother. He of course was excited to see him...but something was off. He knew Conan was hiding something...Connor knew that expression all to well. He sat up from the couch and slowly walked nearer, but kept his distant. Something was wrong, and he knew this would not be an easy road.

The RK900 was taken aback by Colton's hug, and acted like he usually did. Conan stumbled backwards, his arms raised in surprise as Colton tackled him, attempting to hug him back but failing awkwardly like normal.

"I'm fine Colt- don't worry."

Yet, at this moment, Conan would have tried to smile to comfort his brother. His expression remained calm, unfeeling, but hiding the underlying distress he felt. His gaze flicked to see Connor standing in front of him, an expression of genuine surprise crossing his features.

"Connor? W-When did you get back?"

Colton looked up from his hug, his eyes peering to his taller brother’s expression. He looked back to see Connor standing a ways away, as he loosened his arms around Conan.

“H-He just got here- no, wait- what-“

Colton took a deep breath to steady himself.

“Don’t worry? I have to worry! What happened with Kamski??”

Connor looked at Conan briefly noting that something was indeed wrong. He was hiding something, and he knew that Kamski was the cause of it. Whatever it was, he knew it wouldn't be good news. Conan always had a way of hiding things from everyone, but Connor knew all too well. He looked at Conan and decided to give him a warm smile to ease his mind a bit, waving a tiny bit.

"It's good to see finally see you again."

Conan finally managed a half convincing smile at his older brother, Connor's smile a slight distraction.

"It's good to see you too, brother."

Colton's shaky breath worried him. As Conan's gaze flitted down to look into his eldest brother's wide hazel eyes.

"Nothing. You need to call him to set an appointment for him to repair you properly this time. He agreed to fix your old parts and reinsert them."

“He- He did?” 

Colton asked, looking rather puzzled at that fact. He let go of Conan, slowly as he stepped back. He took a deep breath as he looked away from the two, and simply nodded.

“How did you get him to agree to do that?”

Connor looked at his brother suspiciously, knowing that what he just said was a gross simplification. He knew Kamski, and he knew damn well that Kamski did not make things easy. He decided against saying anything. He knew he would only stress out Colton more. He would have to talk to Conan one and one, whether he liked it or not. It was just something he needed to do. Finding the time to do that however, would prove to be challenging. But he always accomplishes what he sets his mind to.

Conan's arms relaxed at his side, his brow creasing slightly as he could hear the doubt in Colton's voice. He needed to be convincing.

"It doesn't really matter how I got him to agree, it just counts that I did."

His response was short, not exactly curt but it wasn't kind either. He sighed, shaking his head and giving a weak smile.

"I explained to him that you were his responsibility to fix, given what he had done to you."

Colt nearly flinched at Conan’s direct tone, as his frowned at his younger brother. The smile wasn’t as nearly as convincing as Conan thought.

“I... I don’t know if I believe only a few words exchanged made him change his mind.”

His tone nearly matched Conan’s from before- his expression turning into somewhat of a scowl.

“Wh-what did you say exactly?”

Connor decided he needed to do something before both of his brothers started to argue. He put a hand on Colton's shoulder and smiled at him slightly.

"How about we talk once all of us have settled down...? It won't benefit anyone if we begin to stress out."

He looked to Conan, and gave him a look.

**Meet me in my room after this, I'm sorry but I won't take no for an answer. I know you're struggling and I think I'm qualified in that department.**

Conan disliked the use of communication Connor chose, the sound in his head tended to linger and cause pain and so he would only communicate that way when absolutely necessary. He was grateful that his older brother, wanted to back Colton off of him, as he knew that they both knew that Colton wouldn't stop until he got an answer that he was satisfied with. The youngest sibling remained quiet, avoiding Connor's gaze, speaking neither discreetly to his brother or aloud.

Colton felt Connor’s hand at his shoulder. He turned to look at him, the annoyance that had easily come gone. He sighed and nodded.

“Whatever you say.”

The RK800-51 looked between Colton and Conan. He frowned ever so slightly knowing that in the three months that’d passed, their relationship seemed to be on the rocks. He didn't want this to happen, and he wished he’d been here. Connor shook his head slightly, knowing he can't think like this right now. He looked at Conan with a softer expression, trying his best to relax his brother. He only wanted to help out. He knew that right now, Conan needed Connor the most. He just had to let him in. 

"Everything will eventually work itself out. I know it doesn't seem like that now, but both of you have seen what I went through. It wasn't pretty and I messed up along the way, but I eventually made it. We'll all sort this out, no matter what it takes. We're family, and I'm going to make sure everything is okay. It's the least I could do, after being gone for so long..."

Conan smiled softly, nodding at his brother. Of course everything will work out, as long as he stays on task. The youngest brother's cold gaze glistened lightly, as he stepped past his brothers, glancing to Colton first as he passed by.

"Everything is alright, I promise."

The RK900's eyes flicked to Connor, his warm expression wavering for a moment, knowing that his brother saw right through him, but continued to smile nonetheless. Ignoring what Connor had said earlier to him in his head, he passed his brother's room and entered his own, settling down on the edge of his bed with the door firmly closed.

Colton watched as Conan told him everything was alright. He huffed slightly as he watched him leave them alone in the living room.

He looked down as he heard Conan’s door close. Biting his lip, he turned sharply- going to his own room, slamming the door shut. He couldn’t be out there anymore. It was getting to be too much again.

Watching both of his brothers leave him alone, broke Connor's heart. He wanted to fix this, but he knew he needed to go talk to Conan first. Whatever happened at Kamski's, he knew it was something that broke Conan internally. He sighed and proceeded to head to Conan's, knowing well that his younger brother had ignored his instructions earlier.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connor and Conan have a heart to heart?

Once Conan was settled, the tremor in his hands returned as he shakily reached for his headphones, squeezing his eyes shut for a moment as he pressed them reassuringly against his head. His head was spinning and he couldn't control it, the shrill whine slicing through him. The android couldn't think straight, everything seemed warped and his own words didn't seem to be his own anymore. All he could focus on was having Kamski fix Colton, and keeping his family safe and happy. That's all he wanted.

Wanted.

_Was it?_

The RK800-51 slowly made his way to his younger brother's room. The door was firmly locked, raising a lot of red flags. Connor understood that usually people lock their door when they wanted to be left alone, but the manner in which Conan did it was strange. It's like he was shutting everyone out, permanently and that alone made Connor worry.

Connor sighed to himself and decided to pick the lock on his brother's door. Was it okay to do this usually? No, but he knew his brother needed him and this was the only way he could think to do it. Slowly, he pulled a small metal pin and went to work trying to get the door to open. It took longer than Connor wanted with it being shut so tightly but eventually he was able to pry it open.

Once inside, he peeked around, and saw that Conan was on his bed wearing his noise-canceling headphones. Being careful to not startle his brother, he moved quietly into the room, and closed the door. He slowly made his way to the edge of the bed and looked at his brother. He tapped his shoulder lightly, trying to draw his attention calmly.

"Conan?..." He whispered, even if he knew his brother couldn't really hear him, some part of him felt like it was a necessary thing to do.

Conan remained still, save for the shaking of his hands as his breath rattled loudly in his chest. He heard a sudden click, but dismissed it, initially not noticing the fact that Connor had stepped into the room. The younger brother sat with his back against the headboard, his right knee pulled to his chest as he stared blankly at the opposite wall. He shouldn't be so uncertain about what he had done, it was for Colton's sake, and he would do it again if he had to; even if the shot ended up not being a blank. Conan shivered, his fingers digging into his leg as he ground his teeth, trying to ground himself to clear his head and to think calmly, rationally; he needed to focus on what he was assigned- right? The android shuddered as he heard another sound, a sudden warm presence on his shoulder causing for his LED to spiral into a frenzied amber as he jumped, turning quickly to see Connor standing at the side of his bed; his door was cracked open, and the lock had been forced back.

"C-Connor? What're- What're you-" 

The RK900 stumbled over his words, his composure broken as he was caught off guard by his older brother. Realizing that his hands were still shaking, he quickly clasped them together and brought them under his legs as he crossed them to hide the tremor from Connor.

Connor blinked at the sight of his youngest brother and he couldn't help but sigh. He knew something was bothering him and he just wished Conan would actually tell him what was wrong. He smiled a tiny bit when Conan stumbled his words. It was good to see that Conan wasn't fully as mechanical as he thought. He needed to find out what was wrong, but needed to go about it in the right approach. One wrong move could prove detrimental so he had to be thoughtful yet determined to find out what exactly happened at Kamski's manor.

"I think I had told you to meet me in my room, well luckily I'm an expert at picking locks." Connor winks at his youngest brother.

"I'm here to help you Conan, and talking to you is the only way I perceived that could help you. Sorry about your door though… I'll get it fixed." He chuckled a bit light-heartedly.

Conan found Connor's humor ill timed, but understood what he was trying to do. The android understood what his brother was trying to do, after all, his own programming originated from the RK800 line. He blinked, seeing the hidden concern in his eyes as he felt he was being analyzed from top to bottom; Connor knew something had happened.

"O-Oh, sorry I kind of- zoned out..."

His response was quiet, his words soft as his heartbeat slowed as he calmed down, his LED returning to a calm pulsing blue. Conan didn't want to take his headphones off, not quite yet, as the harsh shrill in his head was still very much present.

"I'm fine Connor, really I am."

The older RK800 sighed to how his brother acted, He knew something was wrong and he had to continue to press on without stressing his brother out too much. He needed to know what happened at Kamski's, deciding to sit up a bit straighter, keeping his soft appearance. He breathed slowly and looked at his brother with determination.

"Conan, you and me both know that you aren't being truthful. You know what I went through when I went to Kamski's… it was far from pleasant. You don't have to lie to me for my sake. We are family and we should tell each other these types of things. You shouldn't have to weather this heartache on your own. If you don't tell me anything, there is nothing I can do for you." 

He gently placed his hand on top of Conan's hand and looked at him with a sad, tiny smile.

"I want to help, but you just need to let me in… please."

Conan's synthetic skin felt completely frozen compared to Connor warm hand, the feeling of their contact and sudden difference in temperature causing for him to shiver. He didn't like how perceptive Connor was, and he had to constantly remind himself, that although he may not be the oldest he was still the most experienced in utilizing his programming. His eyes glimmered with a torn emotion, unsure as to what he should say as it was painfully obvious how badly his hands were shaking due to the conflict in his software.

"I- I just-"

**Say nothing.**

"I-It's nothing."

Conan shook his head, smiling softly as he retracted his hand from underneath Connor's and gave his brother a reassuring look; it was an impenetrable mask. His posture became more regular as his fingers ceased shaking, reaching up to let his headphones sit around his neck; the ringing had gone from his ears.

"Thank you Connor, but nothing's wrong."

Connor noticed how as time went on, Conan's reactions grew less… well, human. Conan was shaking, not even a minute ago, and now he’s seemingly picture perfect. His breathing is even, looking like he is perfectly okay. Connor… He knew what that felt like. To try to supress what you really felt and he knew what his brother was doing. This brought an interesting thought into his head, something that he himself was not yet ready to acknowledge.

"You know I know you better than anyone else, I was at a point just like you were..."

He sighs, coming to a chilling conclusion. He just hoped he wasn’t right… 

His brother… was _never_ deviant.

The RK900 was built to be more resilient… he was made not to feel. Any sign of emotion could be harmful. Connor wants to think he's wrong, but he knows that this might very well be the truth that no one has yet to come to.

Conan looked across at Connor, his smile strained but still somehow warm on his lips, his cold eyes softened. He knew he could talk to Connor about this, but- should he? What good would it do to tell his brother about something he didn't already understand himself? The test, his programming, the things that he was feeling were all so confusing and he just couldn't understand them. He blinked, looking at his brother silently as he heard him speaking.

Did he actually really feel anything? Or was it just in his software?

"Of course, I understand."

Connor gazed at his brother softly and sighed. It seemed like he was sighing a lot these days. No matter what, he needed to put up a calm demeanor. He looked at his brother's cold, blue eyes and could tell Conan was struggling with himself. Conan was wondering things similar to when Connor was just a simple machine, designed to accomplish a task.

"You may say you understand, but I know you're struggling. You know that I fought my programming for the longest time. It wasn't easy, but I needed to become a person others needed, a person like Hank and Sumo needed, and now I need to become a person you, Colton, and Colin need..."

"Connor-"

Conan stopped his brother from continuing, giving him a cautious look and flexing his fingers against his palm habitually. The feeling he had wasn't exactly irritation at his brother's persistence, it was more... tired.

"I am not struggling in any way, I appreciate your concern but i'm afraid that it is misplaced."

"So- would you like for me to simply leave, because I'm sorry to say that I care too much about you to even do that… I've been gone for three months, and it seems like I barely even recognize any of you..."

It was honestly true, the way Colton acted was suspicious, he knew something was wrong with him. His happy-go-lucky brother that he once knew seemed to just be gone… Conan was always a softer person, and now it seemed like he was struggling with his own programming… And well Colin, he's never been the most stable but Connor is sure that even he is going through his own tribulations.

"I believe that your time is better spent elsewhere, perhaps with Colton?"

He was fine, and besides, it wouldn't matter if he was having an issue- his brothers were more important. His sibling's warm brown eyes were too understanding, and caused him to overthink what he was feeling; it was as if he could see right through him, which was rather poetic, seeing as he was told his own cyan irises tended to have the same effect on others. A long sigh left his lips, as he fiddled with his fingers awkwardly as he shuffled his crossed legs on the shaky mattress. His gaze flitted down to his hands as he watched his fingers intertwine, not sure exactly what he should say or do.

"If I find an issue then I will inform you."

Connor remembered hearing a noise coming from Colton's not too long ago. He was pretty sure it was his brother leaving, but he’d like to think otherwise. This family- it almost seemed torn apart. No one was talking to each other, no one wanted to tell about what they really felt… Connor felt helpless… He thought leaving wouldn't be that big of a deal and now, he thinks he should've never left. He sighs and looks at Conan one last time deciding to be truthful.

"I know something is wrong, you're hiding it. You think I don't know, but you and me both know that we are a lot alike in many ways, besides our basic appearance… You need to let me in Conan, I'm here to help you..."

Conan disliked the fact that Connor mentioned his appearance, especially describing their similarities only in the basic sense; he was completely different from his brothers in every possible way and he hated it. But was it hate that he was feeling? Or did he simply find it uncomfortable, or inconvenient? His brother's insistence on getting an answer out of him made him nervous, a faint whining picking up in his ears as Connor spoke.

"Connor, for the last time, I am fine."

He flashed his brother a firm glare, before blinking and sighing, reaching to put his headphones back over his ears as he shuffled slightly backwards, uncrossing his legs and instead bending his knees to his chest as he sat staring at the opposite wall.

Connor looked down, an obvious frown settling on his face. He wanted to help his brother but it seemed like nothing was getting through to him. He was suspicious of his own brother now, and he disliked that feeling very much. He looked back up at Conan, frowning, albeit lessened now. He sighed, deciding to stand up.

"If you need me, I'll be in my room..."

Before leaving Conan's room, he looked to his younger brother one last time, the truth was bound to come out somehow, however the way it came out...That might not be the prettiest. Connor leaves Conan's room and shuts the door. Connor heads to his own room, making a detour to the living room to pick up his dropped luggage.

Conan sat in his room alone now, having remained quiet as Connor left. He hadn't bothered to turn the lights on when he had first come in, in fact, he never really did; the lights in the room would sometimes buzz a little too loudly for his liking, and to be completely honest the lighting was rather harsh. Hank had come in before when his brothers were asleep because he had heard a crash from his room, finding Conan keeled over on the floor with his hands pressed firmly against his ears, mumbling something over and over again under his breath; his voice hoarse. The room had been a mess, everything was thrown everywhere, and some of the lightbulbs had been smashed out of their sockets. It had taken the lieutenant near an hour to calm the android down, having to take a weighted blanket over his shoulders and covering his eyes with his jacket to soothe him. After that, Hank had helped him to tidy the room while Conan apologize frantically, only causing for his father to laugh and tell him not to worry; the older man ended up not replacing most of the lightbulbs in the room, leaving many of the sockets empty so that the lights wouldn't bother the youngest brother again. Conan curled his fingers into the palm of his hand, his nails digging into his synthetic skin as he tried to come to terms with the responses he was getting from the system diagnostics he was running. Everything seemed to work just fine, but- his emotions were... He shook his head to himself, beginning his playlist of nocturnes to keep himself from overthinking anything, or just thinking at all.

* * *

Bringing his luggage to his room, Connor dropped his suitcase near his bed and just let himself fall onto his bed, face first. He groaned quietly into his pillow. He just laid there for what felt like forever. He just wanted to see Hank again, and he wanted to see his brothers happy. It just seemed like he missed so much. He rolled over onto his back, staring at the ceiling. He decided just to fall into stasis, there was nothing he could do at the moment but hope and wait for something to come out of this...


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Connor and Conan have their talk, Colton decides to phone the former CEO for that appointment he promised him...

The quiet in his room was deafening. He sat on his bed, in the darkness- the scene replaying in his head over and over and over again. Colton knew Conan couldn’t have just asked him to do it. There had to be more to it.

A fire began in his chest once again, his stress heightening. If Conan wasn’t going to be honest with him- he had to do it himself.

He should have never gotten them involved in the first place.

Immediately throwing off the blanket he’d wrapped himself in, Colt placed his index finger to his LED- closing his eyes as he made the call.

After a few rings, it was answered, Chloe's voice softly ringing through the connection. "Good evening, Mr Kamki's residence. Who may I ask is calling?"

Colton nearly hesitated as he heard Chloe’s smooth voice in his head.

“It’s Colton. I think Mr. Kamski’s expecting a call from me?”

She apparently hesitated for a moment. "He's informed me that this is the case. Would you like for me to transfer you to him?"

He blinked slightly as he noticed the hesitation.

“Please.”

"Of course." And as she put him on hold, pleasant elevator-style music filtered through his head, almost distracting. A minute or so later, it ended abruptly, Kamski's voice coming through.

"Colton, that was fast. You looking for a time to come through, get that sorted out, right?" If his voice was strained, it was tough to notice.

Colton brought in his knees to his chest as Chloe transferred him over. The music, while brief, took him out of his darkness.

He blinked as it abruptly ended, hearing the familiar voice. It was rather hard to notice.

“Ah- yeah. My brother just came home... he told me. I want to see you- as soon as possible.”

"Right. Uhh...well, it'll have to be at least tomorrow afternoon, since I figure you don't want to sit around my house waiting for me to finish fixing them. 2 o'clock sound fair?"

Colton looked up at the clock- seeing how late it was. He wasn’t going to rest- his mind wouldn’t let him.

“That sounds fair.”

He cleared his throat, and took a deep breath. Kamski’s voice seemed different- and Colton couldn’t help but ask.

“If it isn’t a bother... I wanted to ask. Conan came home rather... distant...”

“What did he say to convince you?”

There was an uncomfortably long pause, before he huffed. "I made him a deal, and he took it." The man sounded almost bitter, though there was clearly no venom directed at Colton himself.

“What deal?”

He pressed on, the change in Kamski’s tone peeking his curiosity.

"No, don't worry, I didn't modify him in any way, I promise. I just probably made him realize something uncomfortable about himself."

“You.... promise?” Colt repeated, shaking his head. “What did you do?”

"I didn't put any tech anywhere near him. I talked to him. Don't stress about it, please. I can almost hear the numbers ticking up."

That made Colton blink wide. Was he asking him to calm down? It felt... somewhat reassuring for some reason.

“You understand how easily I can become stressed. If... if I ask you again tomorrow- will you tell me what you two talked about?”

There was another pause, before Kamski let out a sound, and Colton could swear he could hear the man dragging a hand over his face. "If you flutter those cute little eyelashes I gave you, maybe."

Colton could even see him doing said action. It was so visible in his head. He huffed at Kamski’s jab- and he scowled to himself.

“Maybe?? F-“

A heavy sigh echoed through the phone from Colton’s side as his voice changed, softer and a bit vulnerable. Still always the kid- never the eldest.

“I just need to know what happened to Conan. Please.”

And yet another pause, before Kamski sighed.

"I...look. If he hasn't told you what happened, then he might not want you to know. But...if you ask, yes, I'll tell you. Just make sure you actually really want to hear the answer."

And Elijah shuffled in his seat, clearing his throat. "Anyway, if you want these done in time, I need to get to work pronto. See you tomorrow, Colton."

Colton couldn't take no for an answer. He had to know what happened.

"Okay. I'll try to prepare myself for the worst, if necessary."

He let out another sigh.

"Thank you, Mr. Kamski. I'll.... I'll see you tomorrow."

"No problem. Sleep well." He hummed, before hanging up.

Colton waited as he heard the click from the other side- his hand falling from his temple as he looked away. His eyes gazed at the door, as he knew Connor and Conan were still in the house. There was no way he could let them go with him- especially after how Conan acted. Connor knew best- despite being next oldest, and Colton decided... his place wasn't to be here.

He shuffled off the bed quietly, changing into some clothes more fitted for the outside weather.

However, he was immediately alerted to an incoming phone call: from the same number, in fact.

It made Colt stop dead in his tracks as he answered, quickly.

"Did you change your mind?"

"No, sorry. Completely forgot, I'd appreciate if you didn't bring any of your siblings. That...sounds really creepy, I just realised, but...I don't really like Conan all that much."

The elder RK blinked at the request. "Uh-... okay. Why don't you like him again?"

"That is....related to the question you want answered. Just...agh. Forget it. We'd probably both be more comfortable if you come alone, so pretend I'm not sticking my foot in my mouth. See you later." And he abruptly hung up again: if Colton didn't know any better, he'd think Kamski sounded flustered.

Colton barely had a chance to answer as Kamski rambled on- blinking as he barely heard a hint of a flustered tone in his voice. The line clicked and Colt dropped his hands, sighing.

He moved to his window- as he moved the blinds and opened it, feeling the cold hit him in the face. Colt hopped out of his bedroom, closing the window behind him and walked into the snow, hoping he'd find something to keep him occupied until the morning.

* * *

Kamski just let out a groan as he set his phone down, thumping his head onto his desk. Great, wonderful way to have that conversation going. Whee. Sighing, he sat upright again and cracked his neck, before standing and heading to his workshop, rolling his sleeves up. This was going to be a long night.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While the Andersons sleep, Colton has his own moment with his creator.

Colton had been driving for what seemed endless miles, watching the street lights try to illuminate through his tinted windows. The patrol car seemed to be a second home to him- he spent more time in it then at home.

He was in a daze, when he realized where he had driven to. He was near Kamski's house. Colt didn't know what possessed him to even be in the area- as he mechanically drove his way right to the front of the house. The RK800-01 stepped out into the dark, creating fresh footprints in the snow that had fallen. He couldn't bear to think about having Conan here just hours earlier- now only to be back in a automatic daze.

He was at the door now, ready to knock until he stopped himself- his knuckle settling against the door. Colt looked up- noticing a security camera and he pulled his hand away, stepping back.

What was he even thinking?

A few moments later, to his surprise, Chloe opened the door, frowning in confusion as she looked at him.

"Mr Colton?"

Colton barely had a chance to turn when he saw the door open- seeing Chloe standing there in utter confusion.

Fuck.

"Ah- hi, uh- I'm sorry, I.... I just couldn't sleep-" His words came out in their normal jumbled mess, a blue glow coming to his cheek as he chuckled rather sheepishly.

"Is there...something you were needing?" Her clothing looked much more casual, not just her formal blue dress, and her hair was down. "Mr Kamski doesn't usually see people this late..."

Colton pressed his lips together as he thought quickly for a stupid reason of even being there. He knew it was late- way too late to be intruding into someone else's house.

"Mr. Kamski requested I come alone. However, I wouldn't have been able to do that without alerting the presences of my family so... here I am?" He said, an awkward smile to end his rather ridiculous statement.

Chloe paused, actually not sure of what to say. "I can...let him know you're here, if you want. Uh, come inside." And she stepped aside, giving him room to enter.

He hesitated before dropping his shoulders, feeling rather defeated. Colton nodded, walked forward and stepping inside, back to the familiar waiting room. He adjusted his jacket, stepping inside to the middle of the room.

She closed the door, still apparently seeming a little confused, and she walked out briskly, heading back in the direction of Kamski's workshop, leaving him alone.

Colton watched her go, disappearing behind the doors. He looked around, his hands absentmindedly fidgeting with each other. What was he even doing here?

Only a few minutes later, Kamski poked his head around the doorway, looking absolutely puzzled at him. Pausing to push his glasses further up his nose, he narrowed his eyes.

"That much time can't have passed already, surely."

Colton turned at the sound of the door opening, seeing Kamski come through to narrow his eyes at him. He felt stupid being there- but he felt like he had nowhere else to go.

"I- yeah, I know. It's... really hard being here regardless-" He began, letting out another sigh as he ran his hand through his wavy fluff of hair, and dropped it back to his side.

"Wasn't going to be able to shake my brothers off- Connor returned from his trip- and well-" Colt stopped himself and took another breath, looking up at Kamski.

"I couldn't stay there. I wouldn't had been able to come alone in the morning if I did."

Kamski just stood there, moving his hands to his hips as he listened to him, nodding slightly. "Right, that...that makes sense, uh..." And he brushed back a lock of his own long hair.

"I mean, if you're comfortable, feel free to stay here, at least. I can have Chloe show you to a guest room."

Colton looked at Kamski, a bit of discomfort easily seen on his face. A small warmth began in his stomach, blinking as he offered him a place to stay.

"That seems the better alternative to my original plan of sticking it out in my patrol car." He admitted, a small, awkward smile coming to his face to even his own surprise.

Kamski huffed, giving him a slight wry smile as well. "Probably be a right bit warmer, anyway. Uh, Chloe!” He called back down the hallway.

The smile nearly caught Colt off guard- making his own smile be more prominent. He looked as he called after Chloe.

"I'll try and stay quiet. Uh, just call for Chloe if you need anything." Kamski nodded, averting his gaze and running a hand through his hair, before padding off.

Colton nodded at that, grateful Kamski didn't ask anymore then he already knew. He waited for Chloe to take him to a guest room.

Chloe walked back out to the lobby, giving him a soft smile. "Mr Kamski has a few spare rooms. Follow me, I'll take you to one away from his workshop so you don't have to listen to him all night."

He saw Chloe come back towards him, internally grateful about Chloe's choice in room. "That would probably be best... thank you."

"No problem." She nodded her head, before starting to guide him through the winding hallways, her LED twinkling softly against the polished walls, the android actually barefoot herself.

Colton followed as they walked through the hallways, his own LED flashing it's blue, as he saw them get further and further away from the workshop.

He heard the soft pad of her footsteps on the floor, the sound keeping him somewhat alert.

She stopped in front of a doorway, gesturing. "You shouldn't be disturbed in here. Please feel free to contact me if there's anything you want." She said softly, giving him a smile, before padding off.

Colton listened to Chloe for a moment as he nodded, a slight nervousness washing over him as she left him alone.

He looked at the door, and stepped inside, closing it behind him. He clutched at the knob, pressing his back against the door as he slid down to the ground.

The RK800 ran his hands through his disheveled hair, and sighed. He didn't know what possessed him to be there at the ungodly hours of the early morning, but he couldn't go back now. All he could do now... was wait.

Alone.

#### THE NEXT MORNING...

Despite being in a bed, with a warmer environment then it would have been outside- Colton still felt cold. He felt more cold than ever before, staring up at the ceiling. The sun came up at his side, the light peeking through the nearby window.

He sat up, despite only being able to be in rest mode for an hour until his mind started racing. Colton got off the bed, his usually disheveled hair even more so. His shirt was haphazard on his body as he’d taken off the vest back at home. He approached the door, opening it slowly and peeking out, looking down each side of the hallway. He stepped out- and walked back down the way Chloe had led him, his heart pushing him to go to the workshop.

As Colton neared the workshop, he could hear the distinct crackling noise of a welding tool, muffled through the thick walls. Despite the time, apparently Kamski was up and working on it.

Colton picked up on the sound so easily, as he rounded the corner of the wall- seeing the door to the workshop there. He took a deep breath, not knowing what to say when he’d got in there. He’d probably just wing it.

He approaches the door slowly and opened it, looking inside for Kamski.

Kamski himself was hunched over his workbench, thick welding mask and gloves on, hair tied back in a messy ponytail. He didn't seem to hear Colton, leaning back and raising his mouth to yawn wide, and he set the torch down as he stretched, bones audibly popping.

His hazel eyes followed the sound- seeing where the creator was hunched over. He saw him lean back and yawn- something not as odd as it should be for the time it was.

Colton cleared his throat, maybe hoping to get some sort of attention so as not to frighten the man as he fully entered the room, closing the door behind him.

Kamski blinked, looking around quickly, and now that Colton could see his face, he could see the big bags under his eyes.

"Oh, morning. Uh, sorry, might still be a few hours."

The RK800 noticed the bags, feeling slightly bad for some reason. He didn’t know what to say in that instance as he opened and closed his mouth, looking away.

He sighed and nodded.

“Right. I know... I just couldn’t rest. I’m sorry to have bothered you.”

"Oh, no, it's ok. No bother. I should probably take a break anyway." He let out a harsh sigh, sitting back and dragging his hand down his face. "What time is it?"

“It’s 7:32 am.” Colton spoke automatically, his eyes gazing around the room as he walked in a little further, taking a small spin to look around.

"Shit." He muttered softly to himself, before tugging off the gloves and mask, standing with a groan. "Oh, this was easier in college."

“You should rest- prolonged work in an uncomfortable position can cause discomfort for future events.” Colton spoke again, somewhat of a mechanical feel to his voice.

He just idly flapped a hand at Colton as he shuffled from the room, hunched over slightly, and he didn't seem to care if Colton followed him.

Colton nearly let Kamski out of him sight when he heard him shuffling out of the room. He blinked and went to follow, not wanting to be alone despite it being him.

“W-Where are you going?”

"Kitchen. Haven't eaten." Kamski mumbled, and in fact headed towards the kitchen blearily, making a beeline for the fridge.

Colton blinked, his eyes wide and curious as he followed him into the kitchen. He did the same in there, twirling around on his feet to get a look around the entire room. He stopped on the opposite side of him, across the island in the middle of the room.

His head turned towards Kamski rummaging around in the fridge and his head tilted to the side.

“What are you going to eat?”

"Cereal, probably." He droned, voice monotone from exhaustion. "I really can't be bothered with anything else, and hey, it's breakfast time."

Colton tilted his head the other way as he leaned into the counter, his arms crossed over each other.

“Don’t you think you should sleep?”

"I promised you I'd get this done, so I'm going to get this done." He grumbled, huffing as he snapped the fridge shut without grabbing anything, and shuffled over to the pantry instead.

“You promised me- or Conan?” He asked, blinking wide as his hazel eyes watched Kamski move from one side of the fridge to the other.

The former CEO just shrugged, grabbing a box of cereal and shoving it onto the counter, saying nothing as he went to grab a bowl.

Colton didn’t move as Kamski started to throw all the ingredients for cereal on the countertop in front of him. His eyes followed him, as he pressed his lips together.

“You said if I asked- you’d tell me.”

Kamski paused right as he'd turned away from Colton, shoulders hunching slightly, and he worked his jaw, saying nothing for a few moments. "I did say that, didn't I?"

He observed his movements, easy to notice the body language he was giving him. It was quiet for a moment before he spoke again. Though Kamski couldn’t see him, he nodded.

“You did. I want to know. What happened.”

After a long pause, Kamski sighed deeply, grabbing his bowl and emptying the bag of cereal into it. Without bothering to pour any milk in, he turned, leaning against the counter as he faced Colton, starting to crunch at the dry food.

"I put him through the Kamski test. Hand him a gun, point him at an Android, and tell him I'll only give him what he wants if he shoots. It's a sign of empathy, which RK900 failed. I don't think he's really a Deviant, a proper one, and if he was distant or distracted after that, then it was probably because he realized that."

Colton straightened up, blinking wide at Kamski’s words. He looked away- his LED racing between blue and yellow- staying constant at yellow for a moment.

“He failed-? Wait, no- you can’t be serious, you’re just messing with me. Conan is deviant, no-“

The thoughts raced through his head, imagining Conan pulling the trigger, was it for him? No- he wouldn’t, he knew he wouldn’t... right?

“H-He wouldn’t. He didn’t shoot... you’re lying to me. You have to be.”

Elijah frowned a little as he looked at him, head tilting back, and there seemed something remarkably familiar about his face as he did that. "Believe it or not, I'm being serious. It was a blank, but he shot. Something inside of him is still following orders, following instructions. Doesn't matter where those come from. If he got distracted, then maybe he was realizing that he's not Deviant despite thinking that he is."

"No! You- you can't... Conan is deviant-"

The breath hitched in his throat as the RK800 grabbed onto the edge of the counter, looking down as he shut his eyes. He shook his head, looking up at Kamski, a pained look on his face.

"I have to see it. I don't believe you."

"Alright." He shrugged, trying to look nonchalant but not really succeeding. Setting his bowl of dry cereal down, he headed over to the thermostat screen on the wall, yawning wide as he activated and typed at it with his long fingers.

Colton's eyes followed Kamski as he walked so casually to the screen. He hesitated leaving where he stood, away from the screen that was about to show him the truth.

"Security feeds here. You can interface, or just watch it normally, I don't care."

The elder RK let out a shaky breath, as he walked over slowly, standing in front of the screen. Colton looked at Kamski for a moment, before turning to the screen. His LED flashed yellow, as he lifted his hand, the human skin peeling back to reveal the stark white- and pressed play.

As the feed played, Kamski tuned it out, padding back over to his cereal and resumed breakfast, the crunching loud in the cold, quiet kitchen.

The video replayed, Colton's eyes focused on the screen in front of him. He could hear it, hear everything that was happening.

He saw Conan, in his always cool composure, walking in behind Kamski to the small side table- and Chloe standing there. His facial expression turned to one of confusion until he saw Kamski reveal the gun. His hazel eyes went a little wide as then Kamski forced Conan's hand, making him take the handgun and point it directly at Chloe.

His other hand began to tremble at his side, as his eyes went wider and wider until Conan dropped his hand for the slightest moment- relief washing over him until-

_Click._

The former CEO's hand paused as he heard the click, halfway between the bowl and his mouth, before he exhaled slowly, shoving the spoon back in the bowl and setting it down, padding over to Colton.

The eldest RK trembled, as he watched Kamski take the gun from Conan. He couldn't watch more. The click rang in his ears as he yanked his hand away from the screen, as if it was white hot on his skin.

His eyes were wide, tears beginning to fall, the heavy feeling from before coming back. He couldn't have- why, why did he do it??

Colton's hands flew to his head as he went to his knees, his LED blaring the yellow warning light.

Kamski actually flinched back as he saw Colton drop.

"Oh, shit. Fuck fuck fuck." And he rushed over, dropping to his knees next to him. "Colton, I know this is probably the least helpful advice you're about to get, but you need to calm down, pronto! You need to take a minute to breathe, and think this through!"

The scene replayed in the RK's head- clear as day, Conan pulling the trigger. It was a blank, but he still pulled it. For him? For himself?? Why- why would he fucking do that?? His hands clutched at the disheveled hair on his head, starting to curl in on himself.

"I- I can't- I can't breathe- Conan, no- Conan-"

"Hey, hey, no." He said firmly, putting one hand on Colton's lower back and the other on his shoulder, pushing him to stay upright. "I need you to take long, deep breaths, ok? In for five, out for seven. Repeat that back to me."

Colton felt Kamski's hands on him, mechanically moving to Kamski's forceful movements. He knew he didn't have to breathe- but it felt tight in his chest, the warnings ignored in his eyes as he shut them tight, feeling tears flow down his face.

He heard Kamski's voice through the noise, as he did what he asked of him, obediently.

"O-One-" He began to count back, doing as asked.

Kamski softly counted along with him, expression soft but eyes sharp as he talked him through the breathing exercise. At this point, he wasn't even sure it would work, but it always seemed to help humans, so it was worth a shot. It took a moment, watching his levels come down with each count, with being there at his side.

It'd only been a few days ago, he was so angry at Kamski- and he still was, but now... he didn't know anyone else who could be there next to him.

His eyes opened slowly, his stress easing back to a normal level. He was quiet.

Seeing him calm, Kamski let out a deep breath, flopping back against the island and clutching at his chest. "Fuck me, Colton. Can you not stress me out like that, please? My caffeine weakened heart can only take so much." 

He heard Kamski but he didn't know what else to say. He didn't know what else TO say. Colton slid off his knees, sitting to his side as he placed his hands on the floor. His hair fell in his face, covering his eyes as tears fell to the ground, pooling slightly.

"I-I'm sorry." He said, his voice so soft and fragile.

"It's..." Kamski could feel his retort dying on his tongue.

"Fuck, Colton. You don't have to apologise. I just showed you something pretty horrible." He sighed, climbing to his feet again with a grunt.

Colton pressed his lips together, unable say his brother's name. "I wish it wasn't true." He spoke again, avoiding Conan's name as the scene replayed again, his younger brother's face etched into his memory.

"I know. I'm sorry." Kamski said simply, glancing over at his breakfast. "At least I'm awake now."

He wiped at his face, haphazardly with his unbuttoned sleeves furiously. Colt took a deep breath as he looked up from where he was on the ground, his eyes red and his face sad. He looked away, then began to get off the ground- using the counter to steady him.

"I should be done in a few more hours. I'll want to have at least a power nap before I actually put the parts in you, my hands tend to get a little bit shaky after an all-nighter, but you should be ready to go home before noon." Kamski said simply, tone deceptively light, almost chatty as he scooped his bowl up and resumed his unorthodox breakfast.

"I.... I don't want the parts."

The RK's tone was low, almost looking at nearly nothing as he let his arms fall to his sides, looking more broken than his parts were.

Kamski paused, looking at him in surprise, and he quickly finished his mouthful. "Are you sure?"

Colton was still for a moment, before let out a deep breath.

"I'm sure."

Conan did it for him, but he couldn't do this for Conan.

"....well, uh....shit. There go my day plans." He scoffed, running a hand through his ponytail to try and neaten it. "Well, I guess there's nothing keeping you here, then. Though I know as soon as you step out the door, I'll remember something I've forgotten from missing my sleep."

Colton looked up at Kamski, remembering home. He hesitated, looking away as his eyebrows furrowed. Did he... want? To go home?

Would Conan be there? Did he have any strength to see any of his family, right now and there?

"I... I think I'll..."

 _Go Home - 10 Votes_  
Stay At Kamski's - 5 Votes

**DECISION MADE-**

"I... I think I'll... go home."

His voice broke at the end of his sentence, his eyes shutting tight for a moment as he kept his calm as best he could. He hoped Conan wasn't home. "I need to c-change. I need a moment... to think." He said, softly as he looked up at Kamski. "Whatever you will have forgotten- just call me. I don't think I'll want to be home for long."

"That's....fine." Kamski cleared his throat and stood up straight, no longer leaning on the counter.

"Look, I...I know you hate me. But...this place is pretty big, and there's a lot of rooms. If you ever need anywhere to stay, I'm sure you could manage to sneak around without having to see me." And Elijah shrugged, as if he hadn't just offered something huge, and he dumped his bowl in the sink before padding out.

Colton DID hate Kamski... but... he was the only one offering more than what he could need right now. He nodded.

"I... I don't know if I hate you as much as I did before..." Colton huffed, realizing his anger was placed elsewhere- "I think... I think I'll be back. I feel more at home here then I will there."

"I-...." He sighed again, knowing he had to say what he had to say next. "Thank you for your help. For helping me."

Kamski paused in the doorway, not looking back at him. The normal witty remark he would've made didn't even cross his mind as he exhaled slowly. "Least I can do."

Suddenly, as it had no place on his face- but it felt right- he managed a half-smile at Kamski's word. Seemed like he had to face more demons than he thought. Colton nodded, before walking out, footsteps fading down the hall as he headed back in the direction of the workshop.

_That was an interesting development._


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So much for that appointment... where's Connor when you need him?

The front door creaked open, the morning light shining bright in Colton's face as he stepped inside, seeing no one in the living room. He was deathly quiet- careful to not make noise in case anyone was home.

He didn't bother to see the cars in the driveway or on the street, he just didn't want to know.

Colton stepped forward, his eyes glancing towards the hallway where Conan's room was.

**Should Colton go to...**

_\- Go to Connor's room - 14 Votes_  
\- Go to Conan's room - 5 Votes

**DECISION MADE--**

Colton stopped himself. He was only steps away from Conan's room, but now... it wasn't the time. He wasn't even remotely stable enough to fight- let alone talk to his brother right now.

Looking at his room, the door- the scene popped up. The same scene- now integrated into his memory core, of Conan shooting Chloe. The deafening click.

Taking a step back, he turned on his heel- going the opposite direction. The pull was strong, as he went towards the other brother he had to hope was home.

Connor was still very much into stasis in the early morning hours, by the looks of it some would even say he looked exhausted. Obviously that wasn't possible due to his android nature, but he still managed to. His usually neat hair looks a bit disheveled and seems to curl at the end of it. He's lying under the covers, hugging a pillow and looks quite peaceful.

Colton hesitated at the door, lifting his hand to knock when instead he pressed his forehead against the door. A deep breath escaped him as he knocked lightly, and opened the door slowly. He poked his head through the opening slowly- seeing Connor in stasis on the bed. He looked so tired- so peaceful however, despite being gone all that time.

His hazel eyes gazed over Connor- thinking back to watching him on the television, speak to millions of people at Jericho's side. He was famous- more famous than anyone could have ever imagined. A revolutionary, the word tugging at his pretend heartstrings.

He stepped further inside, closing the door behind him. Colt made his way over to Connor's bedside, looking down at him. He became thoughtful- wondering how to wake him.

"Connor?"

Hearing his name uttered by his brother, it was able to pull him out of stasis quite quickly. He slowly blinked his eyes open and then stared back into his brother’s worried eyes. He smiled softly and patted a space next to him on his bed for Colton to sit.

"Good morning, I'm glad to see you're okay."

Colton watched as Connor awoke, and sat down where he'd gestured to. "I'm... okay. Yeah- I just...-" 

"I need a hug."

Connor chuckled slightly, and sat up. He brought his brother into a tight hug. How could he say no to Colton? He smiled a bit into the embrace. "Anything for you." He held him close, and hummed slightly, content with the physical contact.

His face pressed into Connor's chest, his own arms wrapping around his brother just as tight. Colton shuddered a sigh, rubbing his cheek against Connor's shirt. He nearly pressed into him, not wanting the hug to end.

Not wanting to let go of his brother either, after all that happened when he got home, Connor decided just to talk while still holding onto him. 

"So, I'm guessing a lot happened while I was gone, I wish I could've called you guys more..." He sighed a bit. "Everytime I had the chance to, it was always cut short… Sorry about that, by the way. At least I'm here now. You don't have to respond- I'm just getting some stuff off my chest as the saying goes."

Colton nodded at that, being unable to speak. Connor had been gone for so long, it felt so weird even having him back. His eyes closed against Connor's chest, fighting back tears to let his brother speak.

"I-It's.... it's been hard without you." He whispered, to himself mostly.

Connor placed a kiss on the top of Colton's head and sighed a bit, he really didn't know what to say. Back when he was making political speeches in Washington, he knew exactly what to say and how to execute the situation to get his desired results. Now- he just needed to think with his heart, which didn’t make much sense when he thought about it, but it's what Hank would want him to do.

"I can tell it has been, I sometimes regret leaving you guys. I mean, I knew I was doing the right thing… but I had to make sure that we had our rights. Though… it felt so empty when I came back home yesterday. So much has happened. I missed you, Colin, Conan, Sumo, and… Dad… I'm here now and I'll do anything to make things right again. You can count on me, I promise I won't leave again."

"Y-You... you have to pinky promise." Colton shakily brought his hand from around Connor, holding out his pinky as he did always.

"I hope... with you back, we can be a family again."

Connor smiled brightly at his brother, something that Connor didn’t show often.

"Why of course." He raised his pinky, and interlocked his with his brother’s. "We'll be a family again Colt, I'll bring us back, it's what I do best." He grinned a bit, trying to ease the tension a bit.

Colton held his brother's finger in his own for a moment. The feeling was comforting, more so than anything ever. He sighed heavily. "Sometimes I feel like that should be my job. I'm the oldest here."

"Just because you're the oldest, doesn't mean you should just have to deal with all the responsibility alone. I'm here as well, to support you as much as you support the rest of us. We're family and that's just what we do, Colt. " Connor continued to smile and hold his brother's pinky, he felt comfortable as well.

"I... I know. I still can't help feeling the way I do."

Colt sighed, not letting go of Connor's pinky. He didn't want to.

"Hey- it's perfectly okay to feel the way you feel, just know that you don't have to go through this alone. I know something's wrong. You don't have to tell me now, but I can sense the trouble. I’ve been through it before so I know when something is up." The RK800-51 kept the slight smile aimed at his brother, speaking in a rather soft and hushed tone.

Colton shifted slightly as he was quiet for some time. He shifted the conversation, as he took a deep breath.

“Did... you talk to Conan?”

Connor sighed deeply and looked away for a second before turning back to Colton.

"Yeah… yeah I did. It didn't end as well as I thought it would… Nothing overall bad happened, I just have this feeling I guess...."

Colton’s breath hitched in his throat. He was the only one who knew. Would he tell Connor....? COULD he tell him?

“Oh... well...” 

_Tell Connor - 18 Votes_  
Don’t Tell Connor - 6 Votes

**DECISION MADE—**

“T-There’s something I need to tell you. I.... I know what happened at Kamski’s.”

He suddenly had this serious expression on his face, knowing from Colton’s tone it wouldn’t be good.

"What happened?"

Colton shuddered slightly. He pulled away from Connor’s embrace- knowing this was going to be hard for even him. He leaned away, looking away from Connor as he spoke.

“He... he did the test. Kamski showed me... it's in my memories.”

Colton’s voice cracked- all the emotions from watching the video made him shut his eyes in anger.

“-and he failed.”

"....The Kamski test..." Connor whispered and looked down as well. He remembered that day clearly. It had been a defining moment for him. It showed that he felt empathy… that he cared… If Conan had failed then he knew that he was right… Conan wasn't truly deviant, he was still just following his mission.

"...I need you to calm down… I need to tell you something that I know won't be pleasant.... I have known for sometime.... Now with this-" Connor cursed himself a bit, finding it hard to tell his oldest brother the news.

"Conan is not deviant..."

“I know. I know he’s not.” Colton replied softly, his voice breaking even more. His head fell into his hands, clutching at his hair.

Connor decided to scoot closer to his brother, and take him in another hug. He knew he needed this right now and he would be damned if he left him to deal with this alone. 

"He's just following his mission Colton, and that was to protect us. I don't know what else we can do. He'll break through, but we need to be strong about this… He's lost right now..."

Colton couldn’t hug Connor back this time. He felt squeezed, from his arms wrapping around him again. A stifled sigh escaped the older android.

“Follow his mission to protect us meant he’d kill someone else... for me.”

Connor sighed. "I wish he hadn't done it, but he was just following his orders… he wasn't ‘thinking’ about what his actions would do..” He squeezed his brother, more in an attempt to calm his own self down. Connor could not his facade break.

“I wish he hadn’t done it. I wish I had never told him. If I never told anyone- none of this would have happened...” Colt shook, biting his lip to try and stop from crying. It was inevitable.

"Colt… It was bound to happen, you know that. He would've continued to follow his orders, in some way, shape or form- we would've eventually realized. It's unfair that it had to be like this… If Conan's mission is to protect us, that could have harmful effects, I mean it already has… but we need to find a way to stop this… I… The answer isn't simple..." Connor rubbed Colton’s back, in a comforting manner, knowing that his brother was bound to cry.

It’d already happened, tears falling freely down his face. Down Colt's cheeks. He couldn’t stop them from falling and let alone speak. He felt at fault but at the same time- he still felt anger about all of it.

Connor continued rub circles onto his brother’s back, and started to hum slightly. He began to hum, "Everything Will Be Alright". It was the song that liberated their people, and it was a song that was near to Connor as Markus himself taught him how to sing it. He knew how close Colton held it to his own heart as well. He thought that this would help ease his brother’s nerves. Connor knew that things were rough, he just hoped he could ease the pain his brother felt.

Colton’s audio receptors registered the sound. He let out a deep shudder sigh as he held onto Connor quietly, his eyes staying closed as he helped him calm down. It didn’t take long for Colt to stop crying as he just lay against Connor, warm in his arms.

Connor continued to hum softly and looked down at his brother and smiled. It made him feel better that he was finally able to make his brother happy since he arrived back at home. He raised his hand and softly began to rub away the trail of tears on his brother’s face, being sure to be extra gentle.

“I missed you so much, Connor.”

His voice was quiet as he felt his gentle hands cleaning off his face. He was such a mess today.

"I missed you so much too, Colt. You don't know how long I've been waiting to see you all again..." Connor smiles and kisses his brother's forehead lightly, and ruffled his brother’s already disheveled hair. He laughed softly, the sound easing the tension.

Colton smiled at that then actually laughed at Connor ruffling his hair. “Hey! You aren’t going to make it any easier to comb later!”

Hearing Colton laugh again, made Connor feel like everything he did was actually worth it . He would do anything just to hear it again.

"Well then I guess since its messed up anyway...." He grinned slyly and messed Colton's hair a bit more, but actually began to laugh this time.

Colton blinked at Connor’s sly smile and he began to laugh even more, trying to get away from Connor’s hair rustling hands.

“Connor- no! Stop!”

Connor couldn't help but to laugh even more and the two up falling onto Connor's bed. Connor ended up hugging his brother with both of them now laying down on the mattress. He stared at his brother and smiled.

"I really missed your laugh, it never failed to make my days bright. I hope I can do the same to you."

Colton became tangled in a mess of blankets and laughter, the light feeling making him forget about all the bad stuff that had happened. Connor was home and he was going to make it better. He already made him feel better.

He lay back, in his brother’s arms- and he snuggled closer, feeling safe where he was in Connor’s bed.

“I just missed you, period.”

Colt smiled up at Connor and hid his face, closing his eyes.

“You make me happy, brother. You always do.”

Connor brought his brother closer to his chest and rested his hand gently on his brother's back. He hummed slightly and closed his eyes, just wishing this moment between them could last. He was glad that he was able to get his brother to calm down finally, that brought a wave of relief to Connor.

"You make me happy as well..."

The calmness brought about this sort of tired- one that he wasn’t one to shy away from. Colton rested easily against his chest, listening to the hum in his voice. It wasn’t too long before Colton’s LED flickered yellow, indicating he had fallen into stasis. Calm- collected, and at ease for the first time in a while.

Connor noticed his brother's breathing start to calm and couldn't help but smile softly. As Colton fell into stasis, he couldn't help but to do the same. It was early in the morning anyway, and he was pretty sure Colton needed him the most right now. He brought the covers up to them, and snuggled against his brother, making sure a protective arm was around him. He slowly fell back into stasis shortly there after.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FLUFF?
> 
> FLUFF. K THNX.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conan reflects...

The RK900 grew restless of sitting still, the music flooding through his headphones making him dull, as it eventually switched over to his waltz playlist. His interest peaked as a familiar composition began, the melody light and airy; it was fast, uplifting, but slowed just enough at points for him to feel a dip in his chest as he was again swept away. 

Conan enjoyed music, more so than any of his brothers he thought, as the sounds resonated more with him due to his heightened senses and caused him to feel a certain way that he could not replicate through any other activity or experience. He swung his legs slowly over the side of his bed, standing gradually as the music swelled, coming to a brief slow; the heaviest part.

Taking several paces away from his bedside, he turned his head to the side, glancing into the old full length mirror that was leaning against the wall; Hank had figured that due to his perfectionist nature, he would appreciate having a large mirror to check his attire... despite never being able to hang it up properly which sat on Conan's nerves, but he was definitely grateful for the addition to his room. He appeared shorter in the mirror as he cyan eyes flicked to meet his reflection, his headphones sat neatly over his ears. 

His hands hesitated over his neck as he reached to straighten his collar, then moving to the cuffs of his shirt as he pressed it between his fingertips until it was perfectly flattened. The high collar around his neck was an interesting design choice on CyberLife's part, but he found it somewhat reassuring... it was odd how that worked. 

Despite all that had happened, his hair had somehow remained neatly slicked back, yet another stark difference to his brother's typically more 'unorthodox' ways of styling it. His gaze remained fixed in his own, the darkness of the room making it almost seem as if they were illuminated; the electric blue symbols on his uniform shone an eerie light on the white walls, giving his eyes an almost vicious look. Blinking, he took a step back, unsure as to why he was feeling uncomfortable because of his own image.

 

It was just another thing wrong with him.

He wasn't sure why he kept his uniform. Connor had tried to convince him to throw it away, but the younger model had always refused, giving a vague and usually unanswerable response; he found it comforting, it was normal, it was constant. Pursing his lips slightly in thought, he turned in the mirror to see the telltale glowing blue band on his arm, his fingers tracing over it thoughtfully. 

His headphones clicked, the song coming to an end as another took its place. He found the order in which each song would progress to be rather poetic, each similar yet different enough to boast unique qualities, but all still replaceable; like he was. This song, unlike the last, was furious. It danced desperately in his ears as if the very notes were alive, clinging onto their heart and trying frantically to outrun the silence that followed which would mean their deaths. 

The room resonated with a dead silence, the only sound being the slight muffle of the waltz Conan was listening to in his headphones, the walls basked in an eerie blue glow. His eyes flicked again to see his reflection, the image in front of him unwavering as it stood perfectly still. He didn't like it. It seemed harsh, almost threatening as it appeared to him. It shouldn't be him, but, after what he just did- it seemed to fit him uncomfortably well.

Conan sighed, turning after a moment to remove his reflection from his line of sight, it's appearance odd. He moved his headphones to rest around his neck, the music still pouring softly from the two cups as the lay flat against his jacket; he didn't bother to end the song. A light hum sounded through the wall, causing for him to give his wall a quizzical glance as he could have sworn he had heard someone speaking. 

With bated breath the brother walked hesitantly towards the door, his hand curling blindly around the handle, the blue insignias on his jacket reflecting off of the scratched brass. He wondered what his brother was doing, figuring that the revolutionary must be overworked from his trip. Reluctantly, and with great doubt, he opened the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is definitely the smallest chapter to date, only to accommodate Conan's reflection of himself as an android.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Colton confronts Conan. That's gonna go well...

The youngest sibling froze at the door, forcing himself to take a step back as he stared blankly at the entryway in front of him. He probably shouldn't disturb his brother, especially after the conversation they had had not too long ago. The android shook his head, a shaky breath rattling in his chest as his shoulders rose, bringing the dying music from his rested headphones closer to his ears for just a moment, before letting it fade as his body relaxed. 

Connor had told him that he could come to speak with him. He knew he could trust him but- something didn't sit right about it with him. What would his brother think if he told him? What would- what would Colton do if he found out? Shakily, he moved forward, cracking the door open slightly without a sound. He had to speak with his brother, he would know what to do; it was his best possible approach. 

As the door swung gradually open, Conan noticed the outline of two figures lying on the bed, in a tight embrace as their LEDs flickered peacefully. A sharp pang of hurt sliced through him as he recognized the second body to be Colton, seeing his eldest brother's stray curls lying lazily in front of his face. Why was Colton here?

The longer he looked, the worse he felt, a weight settling on his shoulders that felt as if he were bracing against the force of the Earth itself. His eyes stung, and with an unsure hand, he reached to clear his vision, instead finding his fingers slightly damp as something warm trickled down his cheek; he was crying? A look of pained confusion crossed his face, his audio sensors deafening as the world went silent, blinking rapidly to clear the tears from his eyes. This emotional response felt wrong, it didn't sit well with him and it made him feel defective. He shouldn't be here. 

This wasn't his place. His feet shuffled lightly against the floor, before moving heavily as he stumbled backwards through the doorframe, clicking the door quietly shut behind him as he slid down to the ground with his back against Connor's door. His head spun as his mind was bombarded with conflicting signals and warnings, his thirium pump strained in his chest as his breathing rate increased rapidly.

He didn't belong here.

He wasn't one of them.

Colton had been at the most peace being there in Connor’s arms. He didn’t want any of it to end. He felt nearly broken of all the stress and emotion overwhelming him when he heard something...

His head lifted up slightly, looking at the door as his sleepy eyes narrowed slightly at the noise that came from it. His LED flashed yellow for a moment as he moved slightly out of Connor’s embrace- careful not to disturb his younger brother.

Colt felt a sort of worry and stress eminent from behind the door, and he stepped over quietly, his hand on the knob ready to open.

Conan shifted over to sit against the wall next to the door, pulling his legs to his chest as he rested his arms atop his knees, his head dipping between them. A stifled sob came from the android as his LED sputtered between a dying scarlet and a fluorescent amber, warnings popping up in his vision telling him that there was something wrong with his software; that he shouldn't be able to feel this sense of despair. Warm tears trickled hidden down his cheeks, and after a while, Conan gave up on trying to prevent them from falling; he had no fight left in him. He didn't know what he was, and he felt that he belonged nowhere. The RK900 was different from his brothers, in appearance, programming, and in person; the 'family' he was in didn't really feel like his own.

A single thought began to settle in his chest, and the more he tried to ignore it, the harder it became for him to convince himself that it was false. The cold feeling of realization set in, the harsh reality of his being causing for him to shiver.

He wasn't deviant, was he?

Colton turned the knob, a slow easy breath escaping him as he heard... crying? He peeked through the crack he’d managed to make, when he realized...

His eyes went a little wide, as his breath caught in his chest. Colton opened the door wider, stepping out to see Conan on the floor, crying. His heart fell- seeing his brother so broken on the floor. But.... he hesitated. Seeing his brother- and suddenly the scene replayed in his head- the click- and Colton bit his lip. He couldn’t find his voice and when he did- it was small. Scared.

“C-Conan?”

The sudden sound of a voice next to him, despite being quite timid, caused for him to jump. His head snapped up, his cheeks stained with dried tears, his eyes glistening with more threatening to spill over. He blinked, his icy cold eyes wide, his expression a mixture of surprise and- fear? Conan looked to see his eldest brother standing in the doorway, looking at him with a rather reserved expression, the shadow of the frame keeping his expression partially hidden.

"C-Col- Colton?"

His voice wavered, his stutter nearing it's worst as he watched his brother with twinkling wide eyes. He sniffed, quickly trying to wipe away the tears from his eyes on his sleeve (he never liked to get his uniform dirty, so this was very odd for him) as he cleared his throat slightly, managing to force himself to show a somewhat calm mask.

"H-How did the appointment go?"

Colton watched his youngest brother’s expression... and it scared him. He was crying- something he never normally saw Conan do. It hurt his chest- and he resisted trying to put his hand where his regulator was by habit.

His eyebrows raised and his eyes wide, listening to how fragile Conan’s voice was. Then- he asked about the appointment. This time- it was his turn to stutter, looking away.

“I-... it went... fine. I... I just...”

“Conan- I.. I know-...” His words were a jumble in his head and it began to frustrate him. 

“I know what you did.”

Conan watched nervously as Colton looked away, his head turning completely to avoid his gaze, his features now completely masked in the shadow of the doorframe. His brother's speech made him anxious, and his jaw hung slightly open as to ask him what was wrong when-

_I know what you did._

The words themselves felt like the crack of a gun in his head, his whole body going cold as every inch of him began to buzz with anxiety. He couldn't know- could he? H-How, how could he- Kamski. His LED solidified as a vibrant scarlet, the color contrasting with the intensity of the cool color in his irises as he blinked with pure fear in his eyes.

"K-Know what?"

He could barely speak, his voice not even sounding the same as he looked up at his older brother, absolutely petrified as to what he might say next.

Colton grit his teeth, unable to look at Conan in his cool, blue eyes. The eyes that were always cautious, diligent but now filled with fear. His hands clenched into fists as Conan played dumb with him, his own LED blaring between red and yellow.

“I-I saw the whole thing. It- it keeps replaying in my head- and I can’t make it stop...”

The words came out through his teeth, his blood pulsing through his tightly clenched hands.

“Conan, y-you nearly shot Chloe... You aren’t d-deviant.”

"W-What do you mean?"

Conan's words came out merely as a reflex, he was incapable of speaking properly if he tried let alone being able to distract himself from the shrill whine in his head. This wasn't supposed to happen. Colton should have just gone to get his old parts repaired and reinserted, and he shouldn't have been able to find out about- about the test; the test that he had failed, the test that had proven him to be a machine.

"O-Of c-course I'm deviant, l-look at me-"

The younger android let out a nervous chuckle that was rather high in his throat, it was strained and sounded painfully forced and unnatural. His hands began to tremble and he had to clasp them tightly together to keep them under control. Conan looked desperately towards his brother, begging to no-one that he would turn to look him in the eye so that he could understand how his brother felt.

"Colton I-"

He couldn't finish, the words dying on his lips as he winced, the whine now a shattering scream that pierced through his head.

He had nothing to say.

“Stop! You stop- trying to, dodge what actually happened with Kamski-“ Colton began, the heat welling up in his chest once again, finally looking at his brother with visible tears in his eyes, his expression pained and frustrated.

“I can’t stop it replaying over and over again in my head, I saw you pull the trigger- and for what? For me?”

“You aren’t even acting normal! DO you even know what that is??”

Conan's LED began blinking hurriedly, his stress level skyrocketing as his brother's tone turned irritated, his questions pressuring him down as he could almost feel himself bending the floorboards beneath him as he felt as if he wanted to just disappear underneath them. He was frozen stiff, he couldn't move, his eyes watering as he stared at his brother in a quiet disbelief.

"Colt, I-"

He blinked, Colton's last words burying themselves under his synthetic skin, as his vibrant cyan irises dulled to a near darkened cool grey state. His eyes slowly drifted down to the ground as he stopped trembling, the final tear streaking it's way down the android's cheek as he cleared his throat softly, sniffling. Conan's expression remained a blank slate, his eyes dead as he looked forward, his body completely still save for the frenzied flashing of his LED.

"I'm sorry."

His voice was quiet, defeated, and completely monotone.

Colt opened his mouth to say more- when he stopped. His eyes widened as he saw Conan- change right before his eyes. Conan wasn’t looking at him anymore. His tone- scared him.

He messed up again. Conan was broken- defeated in the heat of Colton’s words. Colt’s voice broke, tears falling freely down his own eyes.

“This was all my fault.”

The elder RK opened his mouth to try and speak- but nothing else would come out. He was frustrated- upset, things weren’t forming correctly in his head as his own LED flashed haphazardly in his emotional state.

"It's ok."

Conan's voice droned mechanically as he remained fixed in his position for a moment, shuffling his feet slightly before sliding back up against the wall to stand to his feet, his eyes still locked at a certain grain in the floor. Slowly, but fluidly, the youngest RK moved towards his brother as if he meant to comfort him; instead, his eyes met his, and he paused for a moment, seeing nothing as he looked right through his brother.

"Everything is ok."

Without so much as another word or interaction with his sibling, he had walked past him and had gone back to his own room.

_This was a mistake._

_**He was the mistake.** _

Conan’s voice sent pure chills down Colton's spine. It was mechanical- cold, harsh as he watched his taller brother get up off the floor. His deadpan stare made Colton’s heart drop into his stomach, as he suddenly felt cold. It was cold- as his eyes widened, terrified of those dead, blue eyes- staring through his heart. Through the closeness he’d once felt, gone. It was unnerving as Conan simply walked past him, leaving him standing there in the darkness of the hallway.

His LED blared between scarlet and amber, his thoughts running wildly through his body- through his mind.

**Stress Level- 88%**

Colton's hands flew to his head, as he trembled where he stood. Colton had fucked it all up. He ruined Conan- he pushed him back- back towards only focusing on his mission. Was he the cause of everything that had happened? Snapping at Hank, yelling at Conan, and confronting his worst fears in Kamski- the choices he’d made-

It made others suffer.

Maybe... he should have never been found.

Maybe... it’d be best... if he was gone.

Inferior, old, outdated-

**Obsolete.**

* * *

He entered his room quietly, his headphones still around his neck as he clicked the door shut behind him, locking it as securely as he could. Autonomously, he took his headphones off and tossed them haphazardly onto his bed, standing in the dark room alone. As the isolation slowly crept into him, his tremor returned and his eyes began to water, seeing himself shaking in the mirror before him. Like before, his eyes locked in his own, his cold irises boring a hole deep in his chest as he stared at the monstrosity before him; he was trapped inside the reflection of himself. Taking a shaky breath, he took a small step forward, his glowing insignia becoming brighter in the mirror as he got closer.

"O-Of course I'm a deviant- I-I have to be."

His eyes widened, his fingers trembling as his breath rattled loudly in his chest.

"I have to be."

_"I have to be."_

**_"I have to be."_ **

His fingers curled in his hair, pulling tightly as his neat appearance slowly began to unravel, his cool composition completely gone. Conan was the calm brother, the rational brother, yet here he was unsure of everything he had ever done; he was unsure of who- of what he was.

"Stop-"

The high pitched squeal in his head became deafening, completely dominating his senses as pain rippled throughout his body, causing for him to yelp slightly. With a narrowed glare, his focus turned to his reflection once more. The figure he saw staring back at him was a mess. It was useless, it had failed it's only purpose.

It should be deactivated.

 _He_ should be deactivated.

A boiling anger rose in his chest, his fear turning to frustration as his hatred for his mirror image grew, the shrieking in his head only adding to his irritation. His glare was cold, harsh, and deadly.

"Stop."

He spoke with a bite, the mirror below him mocking him, reminding him of his failure; it reminded him of his lack of purpose, and of his lack of belonging.

"Stop."

His broken words became louder, just under a shout as he begged aloud to himself, the thoughts circling in his mind, closing in on him mercilessly as he felt a dark weight smothering him. He squeezed his eyes shut, his body trembling as he felt himself being suffocated under his guilt, under his faulty programming, under himself. Everything was his fault, he was a mistake. Everything about him was a mistake.

**He should just die.**

The android cried out, the pain too much for him as he finally snapped. In a flash he had gripped the full length mirror before him tightly in his hands, already cracking the worn frame beneath his fingertips as he flung it across the room. The glass shattered, cascading down in fine shards onto the floor, glinting in the cyan light that Conan's uniform gave off. He panted heavily, staring wide eyed across the room as he stumbled backwards into the corner, slipping down to the ground as he brought his hands to his ears, his knees hugged tightly to his chest.

"W-What a-am I- w-why c-can't I just-"

"Why can't I j-just live?"

* * *

Connor had been in stasis rather peacefully even throughout Conan and Colton's exchange earlier. The crash however, coming from the nearby room, edged him out of it. He gasped and snapped out of stasis, his LED momentarily flashing red, until it settled into an alarmed yellow. He got up from bed quickly and made his way outside of his room. This is when he saw Colton, with high stress levels and trembling terribly.

"Colton? Colton, what's wrong??"

Connor went to his brother’s side, putting his hands on both of Colton's shoulders. He needed to calm his brother down first, but the noise coming from the other room was concerning as well.

"Please Colton- You need to tell me what's wrong… I'm here to help-”

Connor a sense of urgency to his voice, panicked but still was trying to keep his cool. He couldn't set his brother off even more.

Colton knew he didn’t have to breathe, he never had to- but it felt like a pressure on his chest, as his eyes scrunched closed.

The sound was deafening- as he heard glass shatter and his eyes widened, his head barely turning towards the direction of Conan’s room.

Suddenly, hands were at his shoulders and Connor’s voice was barely pulling him out, pulling him from the-

**OBSOLETE.**

“I- I- I can’t-“

“Conan- p-please, Conan- Connor, I can’t-“

He immediately understood that Colton probably wasn't able to handle what was going on at the moment. He looked at his brother and pulled him into a quick hug. 

"I need you to stay here, if something happens- just don't worry about it. I'll be fine… I need to fix this. Breathe in slowly, Colt… Breathe in for couple of seconds, and out. Continue that pattern… please. I need you to be safe." 

Connor then reluctantly let go of Colton, squeezing his shoulders before he hurried off to where the crash had come from.

Colton could barely feel Connor’s hands on him, the hug making his skin crawl as he tried to breathe-

**WARNING: STRESS LEVELS HIGH**

Connor was gone from his side, as his eyes followed Connor running to Conan’s room.

He couldn’t stay. Colton got up, shakily falling against the wall before he ran after Connor, to Conan’s room.


	13. Chapter 13

Connor quickly made his way to where he knew the noise had come from. He was then standing in front of Conan's room. He tried opening the door but to no avail- it was locked. Unlike last time where he managed to pick the lock, he knew he wasn't going to be able to at the moment. He hated that he needed to do this but at this point, he would take the consequences. He backed up a small bit and with extreme force, brought up one leg and proceeded to kick the door down.

The door flew open with a loud bang and Connor made his way inside. He noticed the shattered mirror and frantically looking around for his brother, his LED now blaring red. He scanned the room until he found him. Conan was a trembling mess in one of the corner of the room, with his knees to his chest and his arms wrapped around them. Conan looked so small… So broken. Connor quickly made his way to his brother and kneeled down.

"Conan?...Conan...What's wrong?..." 

He tried to look for a reaction in his brother and noticed the tears tracks on his cheeks, as well as the new tears that were threatening to leave. Connor placed a hand on Conan's shoulder, and maybe he would come to regret doing that.

The heavy weight on Colton's chest became worse as he ran after Connor. He could care less that Connor kicked the door down. He huffed slightly, getting to the door frame and looking up through his blaring warnings-

Connor and Conan on the floor.

He put his hands up, on the broken door frame, unable to get any closer to his brothers. He denied himself getting any closer than he already was.

Conan was shaking violently, his fingers digging into his ears like before, light beads of thirium rising from underneath his synthetic skin and rolling down his wrists to stain his jacket cuffs blue.

"D-Deviant, I-I'm a deviant."

The youngest sibling couldn't hear a thing, Connor's words drowned out by the piercing scream in his head as he stared brokenly at the shattered mirror across from him. The very use of the word 'deviant' caused him to shiver with agony, as if his programming refused to even let him believe that he was one. His brother's hand on his shoulder startled him, and he glanced up quickly to see him knelt down at his side. Instinctually, he threw Connor's hand off of him and scrambled off to press himself deeper into the corner of the room, either side pressing against his broad shoulders, giving him the appearance of a cornered animal.

"I have t-to be, I a-m a deviant- r-right... of c-course, there's n-no way I w-wouldn't be."

**Stress Level : 95%**

He babbled to himself, muttering 'I am deviant' over and over again under his breath as he stared blankly in front of him, hardly acknowledging the two brothers that stood before him.

Connor mentally cursed at himself at the sight of his brother. He was having an internal struggle with himself. He wasn't truly a deviant but at the same time he was fighting to become one. Conan's programming was stronger than the rest of his siblings, so any sign of emotion most likely caused an immense amount of pain for his younger brother.

He stumbled a bit when his hand was thrown off but thought nothing of it. He quickly regained his balance. He knew he needed to continue to press him. He needed to get his brother out of this. He took in a deep breath and placed a hand on top of one of Conan's hands that was pressed up against his ear.

"You need to listen to me Conan, your stress levels are too high and you could shut down at any minute. You need to stop fighting yourself, your programming is fighting your emotions...You need to calm down before you lose yourself. You are stronger than what your programming says you are.*

Connor is now pretty close to Conan, he tried getting closer in an effort to calm his brother down. Connor squeezes Conan's hand ever so slightly as a means to try to calm his brother down.

Colton’s eyes stayed wide as Conan acted like an abused animal, cringing away from any touch Connor gave to Conan. His eyes looked at the shattered glass, at the mess of the room. The heavy feeling heightened, as he struggled to keep himself up by the door frame.

He could barely speak, let alone breathe.

**STRESS LEVEL: 94%**

He slid down to his knees, his LED blaring between yellow and red.

It was getting too much. This wasn’t happening.

Conan's brow creased, twitching slightly as his hands shook so violently they were practically vibrating. His breathing was heavy and fast, and if he were human he would have passed out long ago. The weight of the empty feeling continued to crush him, the darkness seeping into him as it was all he became. Within the shards of broken glass on the floor, Conan could see the reflection of the illuminated blue triangle on his uniform; it blare back at him with such ferocity it caused him to squint his eyes, the light and its shape only re-enforcing the mechanical feeling he had. The more he believed himself to be a machine, the more he could feel each individual biocomponent within himself, the more he could feel each wire move and each joint bend in his body.

**Stress Level : 97%**

Connor's close proximity was unnerving, he could feel his brother's words vibrating through him, while still unable to hear his real voice as it was drowned out by the persistent ringing in his ears. He shouldn't be there, he had to maintain his distance, he was- he was too volatile and if he hurt Connor then- then he would have failed his mission. Conan blinked, realizing something as he looked to Colton as he had fallen to his knees. From the moment he had seen him outside he should have known.

He had failed his mission.

The diagnostic flashing before him proved it, as he scanned his brother to find the new parts still remaining buried inside of him.

"No- no no I can't have- I-I can't have-"

He shook his head frantically, feeling Connor placing a hand over his ear as he tried to calm him, his words vibrating through him- the feeling worsening his pain as everything seemed to be blaring at full capacity. Every sense was heightened, the room was cold enough to bite through him, his eyes hurt whenever he saw even the faintest hint of light, his ears bled from even the smallest sound, and everything he touched felt like sandpaper against his skin.

"S-Stop- l-let go-"

The revolutionary's words and hold on him caused him to go mad, it was uncomfortable- it was- it was painful. He reached weakly to try and pry Connor's hand off, but when he wouldn't move, the android panicked. His LED flashed in and out of life, remaining dark for a frightening amount of time at some points.

" **Get away-** "

His shout broke in his throat, reaching up and shoving forcefully against his brother's arm, tearing his hand from his ear as he watched him tumble backwards.  
Conan's eyes widened as he realized what he had done, seeing his brother flat on the ground in front of him. His legs lay out in front of him as he went limp- his body still trembling terribly as the welling of tears in his eyes finally spilled onto his cheeks.

**Stress Level CRITICAL : 99.9%**

"I-I'm sorry- I-I'm... I-"

**He had failed.**

When he was knocked back the force had caught him off guard. Connor grunted and winced a bit at the impact. Conan was much stronger than Connor would ever be so when Connor fell back he fell back hard. He hit is head slightly on the floor underneath him, causing some warnings to pop up in his head. He shook his head slightly trying to pull himself together, but found that it was hard to gather his bearings.

Everything was happening so fast, Colton couldn’t keep up.

**old_new_——obsolETE__**

He was shaking, violently, as he struggled to keep upright- hearing, feeling, the stress- he was never good with stress-

**If you were better, than you wouldn’t be in this mess.**

**If you were relevant- they would have replaced your parts long ago.**

**Stress Level: 96%**

The pain was deafening- his mind trying to keep up with the rest of his body.

**SYSTEM MALFUNCTION-** **BIOCOMPONENT#7812 DAMAGED**

The only calming agents for Colton were nearby, the only calming answer in the room focused on somebody else. On something else.Conan could be fixed. Conan could be saved. He was old, obsolete. The new parts Kamski had put inside him were working in overtime, warning signs popping up all over his vision as his hair matted against his face with the tears he let fall freely. 

His head shot up at Conan’s shouts, seeing Connor be thrown back- no, it wasn’t happening- he couldn’t do anything. He wouldn’t do anything. Colton’s body froze where it was, a lagging feeling washing over his system- as his body trembled in agony.

**WARNING: BIOCOMPONENTS INCOMPATIBLE**

**Stress level CRITICAL: 99.9%**

His voice slurred- pieces of his words broken.

“_i_m_sorry. _FoR evr-ethin_-“

Connor was still trying to gather his bearings, and when he finally came to he looked around the room.

"Shit..."

He looked off to Colton firstly and noticed how he seemed to be lagging, a sign that his biocompents were failing him. A quick scan reveals that his biocompents are old, broken, and failing....the scan also reveals the critical stress level that is hardly okay. High stress levels in androids, especially in deviates, could mean a complete shut down. If Connor didn't do something quick he might lose Colton.

Colton was his ray of sunshine. He would liven up the room when no one else could. He smiled even though Connor knew that the smile was sometimes faked for his brothers sake. Losing Colton would crush not only him, but his entire family. Without Colton there would've been no Connor, no Conan, or Colin. He was deactivated for feeling and Connor would be damned if he let his brother go through that again.

Connor shakes his head slightly at the thought of losing his oldest brother. He would find a way to fix this, and that's when he noticed Conan. He quickly scanned Conan as well and it seems like the emotional trauma that he was experiencing was causing him high levels of stress, identical levels in fact to that of his oldest brother.

If Connor didn't do something about Conan as well, he would likely experience a shut down. Even if Conan seemed mechanical at times, he still in Connor's eyes was a good person. He may not have been a deviate, but Connor could tell that he was trying to be. How could Connor give up on his brother for battling with emotions? Connor knew that feeling all to well and if Connor let Conan go, it would almost feel like he, Connor, was dying as well. Conan was a new life, a new person trying to be born...How could he let go of Conan when he was only just beginning to find himself?

Connor had to make a decision...He couldn't save both, and that made him shiver slightly. He knew that whatever decision he made, would not only change his life forever, but his entire family as a whole...The only thing to decide now... was... Who was he going to save?


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A decision had to be made. Connor made his choice-- Conan or Colton?

_Make your choice..._

**Colton's Stress Level : 99.9%**  
**Conan's Stress Level : 99.9%**

**\- Save Colton - 31 Votes**  
**\- Save Conan - 31 Votes**

_A life has been chosen..._

"I am so sorry that I left either of you… but I had to make a choice..." 

Connor mentally curses at himself as he makes his decision. He looked over to Conan momentarily and uttered a small...'sorry'... and ran over to his eldest brother. Connor's eyes began to well up with tears but he pushed them aside. He couldn't cry now… He wasn't going to break yet… his family needed him the most right now. Going beside Colton, he looked at him with worry. Connor was frantic but he needed to do something to calm his brother down… Just what would do it?

Connor then came up with an idea that he knew would bring Colton out of this mess. The skin on his right hand retracted and he reached up to grab hold of Colton's right arm. He began a memory transfer of when Colton was first reactivated and saved by his brothers. The smiles on all of their faces. Conan was even smiling as well. The memory was peaceful, it was calming but above all else it showed Colton how much he was loved by his family.

“_no— stop”

The warning blared in Colton’s eyes as his body kept freezing as he tried to move.

He felt a hand, frantic on his arm as his eyes closed- suddenly, through the static, error messages in his eyes, a window opened- forced itself open in his eyes as he saw them... the day he was found.

**STRESS LEVEL: 99.4%**

Colton’s breath hitched in his throat as the static popped away in parts, the corrupted vision letting him see enough.

He’d been so happy... all the love and... the smiles...

“_save- cona__” He breathed out- as his stress level began to come down from the near edge. Colton wouldn’t shut down.

"I need you to calm down Colton, you need to breathe for me please… I-I can't lose you… I can't lose any of you.." 

Connor continued to share the memory of Colton's reactivation, the hugs that were shared amongst their brothers. How Colin actually laughed a bit at seeing another RK series android alive...Conan smiling and looking happy...a stark difference to the Conan that was currently in the corner of the room but Connor couldn't bare to look at him at the moment for fear that he would break. Connor himself shares the direct feelings that he was experiencing that day. Happiness, excitement, determination. Connor, on that day, was proud that they had found Colton because they’d gained a ray of sunshine. At the moment, maybe the sun wasn't nearly as bright, but it was okay to have off days. Connor would teach Colton this...

Connor needed Colton to fully calm down if he had any chance of saving Conan… He just hoped that Conan was okay… He needed to be… Conan and Connor were a lot alike… Connor couldn't just let him go… If Connor failed, he didn't know what it would do to him.

No, I can't think like that right now, Everything will be alright… 

I'll make sure of it...

All the memories flooding back to him- the happiness, the genuineness of his brother’s, taking him away from what was his memories, dark and alone-

**WAR-NinG: CORRRUptED MEmoRIE**

He could only smile, no pain behind any of it anymore.

Colton breathed. He sucked in a sharp breath, his chest heaving slightly from the heaviness that came off his chest. Connor’s words soothed him, but at the same time- he still knew he’d done wrong.

But he’d never say. Now, would he?

“Connor- I’m- I’m okay.”

Colton’s voice was small, helpless like a small child that had just been scolded. He couldn’t bear to look at his younger brother- a failing unit to his successor.

He forced it. He had to.

**STRESS LEVEL: 76%**

"Colton… Colton look at me please...Your stress levels are still too high- you need to try to bring them even lower before we decide to do anything. Look I know it’s hard right now, I know you think you're not worth anything but you need to continue to fight… At least do it for Dad..."

Connor's breath hitched a bit at the thought of Hank. He’d missed him so much and it hurt Connor that he hadn't even gotten the chance to see him.... and now… Now everything was just a mess.

He wanted to come back home, he wanted to be with his family but everything was in shambles. Connor yet again pushed that thought out. He needed to be strong right now. He had to hide what he truly felt. His brothers needed him the most, and he couldn't let them down a second time… Connor calmed himself down and continued to do anything he could to calm down Colton.

Colton shook his head, refusing to look at his brother. He couldn’t. Not now.

No. He had to force it. Until he could go. Leave. Be alone again so he wouldn’t cause so much trouble anymore.

They’d been fine without him before.

**STRESS LEVEL: 61%**

“Connor please- don’t make me do this.” 

He pleaded with him- begging to make the pain stop. The warning in his eyes continued, determined to hide what he could.

“I’ll be o-okay, please check on Conan.”

**WARNIN G: MA -AlL FuNCtiO__**

"No! I'm not leaving you until I'm sure that you're safe. I am your brother, I am here to take care of you. You shouldn't have to go through this alone, no one should!" 

Connor's voice was now starting to tremble ever so slightly, the calm exterior starting to fade a bit ever so slightly.

"I know you're not okay… but we're going to fix this, you just need to calm down. You matter. Colton- you matter so much to this family. You bring the light when no one else can. I don't want to see you go, please I don't know what I would do if you weren't here. Please just do this for me....... I love you." 

Connor's voice wavered slightly as he said those three words.

Colton's heart shattered. His mind went into a fritz.

He turned his head, finally, to look up at Connor. Colton’s eyes were wide as he blinked at him- using the three words that always worked. That always made him feel better. Special.

“I-... I love you too..”

**Stress Level: LOW**

Connor finally smiled and that's when a single tear tread down his cheek. Seeing Connor cry was a rare thing to see.

"I want you to always remember that I love you, don't you dare forget that..." 

With Colton's stress levels low enough, he turns his head slightly to look at Conan, and he gasps slightly at the sight of Conan. He wipes the single tear from his cheek, careful to not let anymore go. He can't break now and he wasn't but the sight of Conan made his chest feel tight, his LED now a constant red.

The youngest brother watched with teary eyes as Connor had left from in front of him, seeing Colton's stress level plummet through the haze of warnings in his vision. A light smile twitched at the corner of his lips; Colton would be alright. His LED sputtered red before blinking powerfully and stopping, a sudden weight pulling down on him as his whole body suddenly felt foreign.

**Stress Level CRITICAL : 100%**

Conan took a shaky breath as his eyes fluttered, a soft gasp escaping him as he fell forward off of his heels, his arms bracing in front of him, his elbows shaking under his weight as he blinked with wide blue eyes at the blurry ground in front of him.

**Shutdown imminent.**

One by one, his biocomponents began to shut down in order of necessity, the non essential systems going before all the rest. He yelped slightly as something sparked through him, causing for his arms to fall from beneath him as he rolled onto his shoulder. His fingers curled into his palm as he shivered against the ground, his other hand reaching to hold his head as he bent his legs towards him as he felt his joints locking slowly against his will.

This was alright, he supposed, after all his mission hadn't exactly been failed now that Colton was safe.

Colton shook his head, knowing he’d never forget. He saw Connor turn his head... towards the corner.

He sucked in a sharp breath, the blue luminescence making him turn his head away. He couldn’t stress again. It wouldn’t help anything.

He kept looking at the floor, scrunching his eyes shut.

The warning signs in his eyes got worse.

Connor quickly stumbles and rushes over to Conan's side. Connor grabs Conan and sets him on his lap sightly so that Conan's head is on Connor's lap. Connor then puts a hand on Conan's forehead. Connor notices Conan's stress level… and sees that he's shutting down.

"N-no… Conan please you can't do this to me.... fuck- _please!!_ " 

Connor's voice is soft yet wavering, and that's when the tears just spill, his brother is dying in his arms and there is nothing that he can do to stop it… He failed. 

"We… We are a family… Conan I need you… p… please......"

Connor's voice is hoarse now from the agony that he is feeling. He failed Conan...He failed his entire family. Connor shouts slightly in pure desperation. He can't control his emotions now.

"Live...you need to live!!"

Conan breathed shakily, his breaths shallow as the majority of his systems had become unusable. His arms lay limp at his sides, his head tilted back in his brother's lap as he saw the tears falling from his eyes. A light drip of Connor's tears fell to his forehead, the warmth of it near scalding hot to him when in comparison to his stone cold body. His mouth opened, as if to say something as his throat bobbed silently, his gaze flicking past his brother to see Colton standing across from them.

A message flickered weakly in the corner of his vision, and he smiled, his eyes softening as a breath of relief spread through him.

**Mission Successful.**

His cold cyan eyes moved back to see Connor's warm and flickering hazel irises, his smile wavering as he gasped lightly, the shutdown nearly complete as he shivered. His LED slowed in its spin cycle, the color fading as it fought desperately to shine, moving in and out of life.

"I-It's ok, Connor- I-If I was never d-deviant to begin with, t-then I was never alive."

He was just a machine after all, his existence wasn't a life, it was a series programs falsifying an image of humanity.

But, somewhere inside him, he just couldn't shake the feeling that- he wanted to live, that he wanted to be alive.

"I-I was never-"

"Alive."

"D-don't you fucking dare! You were always alive damn it! You are my brother!! You mean the world to me… You can't go… Please… Conan.."

Connor is now sobbing hysterically and shaking his brother slightly, though Connor knows that it was pointless to do, he still needed to try...He was shaking badly, his lips quivering as he continued to sob. Tears now falling freely, as well as some landing on Conan's face.

"You might not have been deviant, but you were my brother… We can fight this together, but I need you Conan....You have to live, you have always been alive. You cared for us, you did everything for us and you showed emotions that you yourself thought you couldn't. Maybe to you, you weren't alive… but to us… to me, to dad, you were so alive....... You… -"

Connor choke's out a sob and continues to cry shaking his head slightly, this can't be happening.

"I love you.... I love you so much… "

Connor uttered those words, knowing that this could be the only time he gets to say them. Connor brings Conan into a tight embrace, knowing that Conan doesn't have the strength left to hug back. Connor knows that this is the end, there's nothing that he could do, but just hold his brother one...last time...

Conan was brought tightly against his brother, and he tried desperately to move to hug him back but found his body completely useless as he slumped forward lifelessly. His eyes were slowly dimming, and his LED had calmed, pulsing weakly as it lost all fight.

Everything had gone quiet, and Conan smiled, his eyes closing peacefully as he enjoyed the silence. He hadn't felt this at ease since- well, ever. There was no ringing, no threat to his mission, there was nothing. The emptiness he had felt didn't frighten him anymore as he felt himself slowly drifting away into it, everything slowing and melding into a blur as his senses completely deactivated. He wanted to speak, he had to- it was his last chance. His mouth felt dry, his jaw heavy as he breathed shakily into his brother's embrace, his lips parting slightly as they cracked open for him to speak.

"I-"

**WARNING : Complete System Shutdown in-**

"I-I love y-you t-too."

His voice was slightly warped as he spoke, sounding as if he were speaking twice simultaneously. A breath of relief escaped him as he managed to push out his words, slumped forward completely into Connor's arms as he closed his eyes. The light trembling in his body slowly eased as his LED blinked thrice evenly in succession, before pausing on a solidified scarlet. As Conan felt himself falling, his LED began to dim, until it was completely dark- it was empty.

An image flickered in his vision before completely fading to black, a vibrant crimson drifting in front of him as he somehow could feel a cool breeze taking over him, a fresh smell in the air despite his lack of senses.

_He wasn't dying._

_He couldn't._

**Shutdown Complete.**

**He wasn't alive.**

Connor just held his brother close to his chest and continued to cry and tremble. He couldn't even say much at all and when he heard Conan utter those words, he cried out in pain. He wasn't physically hurt, but Connor assumes this is what it must feel like to go with extreme emotional trauma.

**STRESS LEVELS ELEVATED - 75%**

Connor saw the warning messages popping into his head...He needed to calm down....He needed to think...Connor slowly let go of Conan and gently placed him onto the floor. He wiped the tears out of his face and proceeded to breathe slowly to calm himself down. He knew he had to do this himself...He sighed slowly.

**STRESS LEVELS DECREASING....STABILIZING....**

Connor breathed a breath of relief but knew he needed to take action. He would save Conan, he still had a chance...but he needed guidance...He needed to call his dad...Hank...but what would he say?

He was broken.

Colton turned his head towards his brothers, as he watched Connor set Conan back on the ground. He searched for the LED, some sort of flashing or anything to signify something good-

There was nothing good.

Colton forced his legs forward, falling to his knees opposite of Connor, his eyes fixated on Conan’s face. It was peaceful- like as if what had just happened, didn’t happen.

His hands trembled as he put them on Conan’s jacket, clutching at the ‘RK900’ logo Shining off the fabric.

Colton lowered his head, pressing it against Conan’s chest as he began to cry, gently, quietly. Silent tears he made no effort to stop.

Connor looked down at Colton and placed a hand on his head, in an effort to try to calm his brother down. He couldn't let Colton stress out too much. In this small exchange Connor was already dialing out to hank when Hank answered rather quickly. His tone was frantic, as he tried to explain everything that was going on.

* * *

Hank was finishing up things at the DPD as everyone else prepared themselves to go home. He sighed sadly as he clicked his bag shut. It's been some time since Colton stormed away, and Hank's been trying to contact him, or the brothers, but they always end up in voicemail.

When was the last time he rested? Hank ended up sleeping in the precinct, in the break room specifically, since the refreshments and food were there, and he did stash some spare clothes if he ever pulled off an all-nighter. It's just that, Hank somehow has had this nagging feeling that he shouldn't be home yet. Not sure as to what's the reason, but Hank knows better to follow his gut.

"Well." He starts as he slings his bag onto his shoulder. "Might as well go home now and see how the boys are up to. Probably don't care I've been gone since yesterday..." Hank mumbled.

Hank stepped out from the precinct, passing the front desk and finally into the parking lot with his car keys jangling in his hands. The old man sighed once more before walking towards his trusty car. It's a bit old but she's still living at least.

Hank was about to open up the main car door, when his phone rang. Raising a brow, he brought out his smartphone (Conan got him a new one a few months back, saying that his old one was 'obsolete') and smirked at the wallpaper of his boys smiling at the camera, with Sumo in the middle.

But that smile widened even brighter and bigger when he realised who was calling. With newfound energy, Hank taps the screen and brings the phone close to his ear.

"Connor, kid!" Hank laughed gleefully, both happy and relieved that Connor is calling him after three months of no activity, due to the other's duties alongside Markus. "About time you called your old man! I was thinking that you forgot about me---"

Hank froze when he heard sobbing and frantic breathing.

“Connor...? Connor!! What's wrong?!"

"...Connor?"

 _"H-Hank… I know I haven't called in a while but I'm home. You need to get here as soon as possible please… please..."_ His voice sounded so small, so hushed and it broke Hank's heart to even hear this side of Connor.

_"C-Conan… He shut down… I couldn't save him.... I had to choose… Please just get here.. I need you… Dad."_

Connor's voice trembled. but tears didn’t fall. He needed to try to stay level for Colton at this point. There has to be a way to fix this...Connor already had an idea in his head but he needed to talk to Hank first before they even agreed to doing anything.

* * *

Feeling his heart shatter into million pieces, Hank cursed under his breath and unlocked the car door, almost tearing it open with the sudden anxiety and adrenaline that's now in his entire being.

"Okay, shit- C-Conan I--fuck----Connor! Is Colton okay? Colin? How are your brothers?" The questions flying out, without him realising, as he climbed into the carseat.

Hank threw his bag into the back of the car, slamming his seatbelt into the buckle fast. Starting the car, he put the gears in drive before revving out of the parking lot and into the roads, almost colliding with a few other drivers and taxis, but fuck them to all hell, the boys needed him.

Leaving the line on speaker, knowing that he should distract Connor, Hank kept his voice steady as he drove. "You can tell me all the details later, but for now focus on me, son. Focus on my voice." Hank turned around a corner, the car now close approaching the house.

Connor breathed a little easier when he began focusing on Hank's voice. His breathing became easier and as he spoke to Hank

"Colton… He's fine.. I managed to save him. Colin wasn't here when I got home. Conan… he… he broke down. He became to stressed, and he shut down because of it. I-I couldn't save them both, I am so sorry Hank."

Connor's breath shook a bit, remembering just how lifeless Conan was in front of him.

"I have an idea as to how I can save Conan, but I just need you to get here first."

Connor even while going through this emotional stress, managed to stay calm. Connor knew it would be of no use for him to stress out right now. There is a time and a place, and right now was neither the time or the place.

After a few minutes, a car revved in the distance, getting louder until it stops by the front yard, call ending almost at the same time

Colton felt Connor’s hand on his head but he had no strength to get up. He clutched onto Conan, unwilling to let go of him.

Hank hurries out of the car, slamming the door shut as his pace quickened slightly, feeling his heart beat at his chest. He moved towards the front door and, finding it open surprisingly, Hank storms into the home, darkness greeting him first.

"Connor?!"

Hank almost slams the door open as he rushes into the bedroom, dread and realization sinking in as he saw how wrecked the room is, and how devastated the boys are in front of him.

Connor was cradling Conan's head on his lap, while Colton was sobbing quietly on the still android, no, _sibling_ before him.

Not knowing what to do exactly, Hank spoke up by the doorway, his voice unsure as he placed a hand on the busted door frame, taking in the scene before him.

"Connor… C-Colton… what....?"

This was a fucking nightmare.

Connor looks up to see Hank, He stands up quickly and puts a hand on Hank's shoulder. Hank can tell easily that Connor has been crying- a sight that he has yet to see. Now Hank's not sure if he ever wants to see that. Connor looks exhausted to boot, having to deal with so much trauma when it hasn't even been a couple days since he arrived back home.

Connor looked into Hank's eyes and sighed. Connor still tried to have the air of calm around him, despite going through all of this.

"Conan.. He… he's gone. He shut down due to high stress levels. I managed to save Colton by giving him some pleasant memories, but but the time I got to Conan to try to do the same… It was too late… Hank, Conan was never a deviant to begin with. His programming was too strong, and all he did was follow his mission..." Connor looks down.

"His mission was to protect his family… and at the end of the day, he accomplished his mission… Look Hank I know this is serious but I think we can bring him back. To what extent I don't know, but we have to try..."

Hank paled slightly as he heard what Connor said, not registering the hand on his shoulder.

Catching himself, Hank shook his head to get rid of the unnecessary thoughts that crawled into his head. He had to be as level headed as Connor was being. Seeing Conan's body on the ground, he couldn't deny, made his skin crawl. He then gave a determined nod, signalling Connor to go on ahead with his so-called "plan", deciding to deal with the emotional shit later.

"Okay. What do you want to do? Run me down of what you've got."

Connor looked back up to Hank, he knew this was a lot for anyone to take in but at the same time Connor knew he needed to be fast in order to have a chance at saving Conan.

"Conan can be reactivated... He's a newer model and all of his biocompents from what I saw were still intact, nothing too heavily damaged by the stress induced shut down. The only person that I know of that can do it is Elijah Kamski..."

Connor sighed a bit at knowing Hank wouldn't like doing this but it was their only option.

"Kamski can bring him back... but I don't think he can just simply... 'turn him back on' so to speak. Conan went through a lot of emotional trauma, if we were to reactivate him, he would fall into the same cycle of shutting down again... Look what I'm trying to say is... is that Conan won't be the same after all of this is over... and... and we all need to accept that if we are going to go through with this.."

He gave a look to both Colton and Hank, hoping that they would both agree.

Colton had barely lifted his head off of Conan’s body, as he heard Hank and Connor speak. He shuddered, from the tears still falling from his face.

“Anything to bring him back.”

Colt’s voice was small, defeated- as he kept a hold of Conan’s body.

Hank huffed. Of course he wasn't fucking fine with Kamski getting his grubby hands on Conan, let alone the rest of the brothers. That's the last thing he would do.... but... it's their only shot if they were to save him, even if it meant not having the same blue-eyed, awkward son of a bitch that he learned to be fond of.

Rubbing a hand on his weary face, Hank nodded taking in a deep breath.

"Okay. We'll do it. We'll go to Kamski's place and work our way from there."

Hank then walked towards to where Conan and Colton were on the carpet. Putting a warm hand on Colton's shaking back, he softly spoke to the elder RK.

"Colton. Hey. You alright with the whole Kamski thing?" Hank rubbed his hand on his back to try and comfort Colton, at least a tiny bit.

"Because I could use some extra hands to carry your brother to the car."

His heart clenched at the broken sight of his eldest. Seeing Colton not smiling, is almost as worst as jumping into the river, in which he is glad that he didn't continue because god… what would the brothers do without him? The thought.... actually frightened Hank.

Connor looked on as Hank tried his best to comfort Colton. He looks away slightly and mentally cursed himself. He regrets ever leaving them... this all went to shit for lack of better terms. Connor was frustrated, but more than that he was heartbroken. He couldn't save both of his brothers and he knew he would just have to come to terms with that. He had to do what he could.

"I can call Kamski… If both you would like, Lessen the interactions between you two.."

Even if Connor doesn't like Kamski all too much, it's the least he could do for being gone so long.

Colton pushed himself off of Conan’s chest, using one hand to keep him steady and touching Conan and the other, wiping away at his face. His curls fell in his face, hiding his eyes.

He felt Hank’s gentle touch on his back, and he flinched slightly. Colt nodded once, hearing Hank’s request. Without letting go of his youngest brother, he began to get up off the ground- holding his head low. A frown was temporary etched on his face, as he kept his eyes away from his brother’s and dads.

“I.... can handle Kamski.”

He spoke quietly, a strain audible in his small voice. Colt kneeled down and got ready to help Hank get Conan in the car.

"Okay...let's do this."

Hank gently made Conan sit up, the same spine-tingling feeling edging into his bones as he saw how limp the other was, before hooking one of the RK900's arms across his shoulders.

Colton did the same, still not looking at him, as they slowly stood up, Conan swaying a bit, lifelessly in their hold.

Voice still soft, and within Colton's hearing range, Hank mumbled, "Come on. Let's do this carefully fast... if that makes sense. We got no time to lose."

"I'll hold the doors open so that you both can go through easily… Hank… Colton… It's going to be alright. I know this is hard but we have to be strong for Conan. It's the least we could do for him at the moment." Connor looks down and heads his way to the front door, holding it open so that Conan, Colton, and Hank can pass through.

Colton held onto Conan’s hand as he helped Hank carry him out of the house, to Hank’s car. He kept his face hidden still, his red eyes only visible when he moved too suddenly. He kept quiet.

Hank nodded as he and Colton carefully maneuvered Conan out of the room without any complications. The older man knew 100% that everyone was going to break at some point, so he made sure that he's going to be there when it happens and while… Kamski does his usual thing.

With a free hand, Hank slowly reached down to open the passenger's seat, letting in Colton first for the boy to sit and settle for Hank to put Conan's head on his lap. As they did so, Connor went out of the house and firmly locking the door (not before feeding Sumo real quick and giving him a fresh bowl of water).

"Okay, he's set." Hank said as he looked at how Conan is lying down on the car seats, legs draped down towards the mat, while the rest of the upper body is on top of Colton, the other keeping a firm yet careful hold on his brother by the shoulders and head, looking as if he's asleep.

Hank then went to the driver's seat, Connor following suit but for the passenger's seat.

Once all were buckled and ready to go, Hank took a peek on the view mirror and almost broke then and there when he saw how Connor and Colton looked. Both were looking out the window but it was plain as day on what's going through their heads.

"Okay.”

Hank started the engine, now with a dark look on his expression.

"Let's go to Kamski's."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, again, we did a vote in the Discord server to determine who would be saved. Boy, was it a close call. Hope you're having fun reading!


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